ODISSC Original
by Lily-chan818
Summary: Not in progress...refer to One Day in Social Studies Class
1. That Day in Social Studies Class

***A/n : Hiya! I'm Mitzuki-chan (aka Mitz), Lily-chan's temporary live-in cousin, and I hope some of you guys like both of us. I wrote a chapter in SSFH, but I was tired, so it wasn't that great. A lot of people think we act alike, so chances are if you like me, you'll like her. Although, my writing style is kinda weird compared to hers (even if I'm really happy, my writing can be serious sometimes. Other times it is incredibly happy!), my writing's heavy and dark especially if I'm in school mode (that is a very scary thing...With class rankings, student council, high school entrance stuff, volunteering, orchestra, choir, and other random clubs that would bore you all to death if I mentioned, I do a lot of work. My writing here is a lot more relaxed, but I hope you all still like.) With that, I might only update once a week (I get homework on weekends and breaks, too), but if I'm doing extremely well, expect more updates. I've also stolen part of Lily's format, lol (and Kag's teachers have same names as SSFH). Oh, and I usually will call my story by it's working title "What If?" or WI? for short. The only reason I didn't call it that because the title is used multiple times in various fanfics. That's just a little bit about me, so I hope you all enjoy my first fanfic!

*Disclaimer : Do most birds fly? Yes. Is the sun bright? Yes. Are my textbooks heavy? Yes, very, thanks for asking. Do I own Inuyasha? Don't tell me you're going to say "yes"...

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One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 1 : That Day in Social Studies

"Now, class, take out your 'Tales of the Feudal Era' book and turn to the second section," the social studies teacher, Ms. Ito, said while she opened her own copy to the corresponding page. Lowering her glasses down to the tip of her nose, she took a seat on the top of her desk and started reading.

Miss Kagome Higurashi, who was supposedly inflicted with many ailments and illnesses, showed up today looking perfectly healthy, and wasn't paying any attention what-so-ever. Why should she? All they were covering was the Feudal Era of Japan. No big deal, to her anyway. After all, Miss Higurashi wasn't ill in the least, but instead she spent her time in the Feudal Era. Traveling with a half demon, a lecherous monk, a demon slayer, a fire-cat, and an eccentric, young kitsune was all a part of her life. However, I'm sure you know all about that.

Kagome stared out the window, completely lost in her thoughts, which mostly consisted of her friends five hundred years back. One word, a name rather, caught her attention, "Inuyasha."

_Wait, what?! Inuyasha..._She looked down at the page she had absent-mindedly turned to, and sure enough, it was titled, "The Tale of Inuyasha."

_Inuyasha's in here? Well it does make sense, considering I've seen the majority of what this class taught first-hand. I wonder, about the ending, how we end. I'll read about this all tonight..._

The bell rang it's musical chime, and everyone stood and jammed their stuff in their bags.

"Oh, I'm sorry guys, I guess we spent too long on the last tale. This is one of my all-time favorites, so kids, wait up!" Ms. Ito regained everyone's attention, "Read through the first part over the weekend, I want your opinions Monday morning!"

Leaving the classroom, Kagome felt a sudden chill, everything that she had gone through and everything she will go through is written within this large book. She hadn't put it away in her bag, but instead clutched it to her chest, _Inuyasha, I have this horrible feeling..._

Realizing she'd be late if she didn't show up to her next class within 30 seconds, Kagome hurried off to her next class, science.

The day dragged by, she couldn't wait to find out what awaited them, but at the same time she was frightened to death about what she would read. What if the ending wasn't happy? What if it truly wasn't this "Feudal Fairytale"?

Despite her desperate need to pay attention, Kagome spaced and stared at the clock all day. Oh, how slowly it moved. Seconds seemed to pass like hours, minutes like days, and hours like entire weeks. It's not every day that you find out your fate in a school textbook.

Finally, the final bell rang, and Kagome rushed home.

After greeting her mother, Kagome ran upstairs, shut her door, threw her things down, and plopped down on her bed with her book in her hand. "Okay, Kagome, you can do this."

She turned to the second section in her book, and began reading.

_The Tale of Inuyasha_

_By the monk, demon slayer, and kitsune._

_Inuyasha, the protector, the glue that kept our mismatched group together. Somehow. I'm not sure how we made it. A monk, a demon slayer, a young kitsune, a fire cat, and most importantly, the time-traveling miko and Inuyasha, the half dog demon. An interesting combination, right? Well, this story is written in several points of view as well. We couldn't get the point across otherwise..._

_It all began 60 years ago with Inuyasha and Kikyou, the Sacred Jewel's protecter..._

And so, Kagome read for hours, emotions overwhelming her. Everything they had done was all written here. She could tell what was written by who, Sango wrote some parts, as did Shippo and Miroku. They all pieced together what they knew and wrote it all down, but something troubled her, Inuyasha seemed to have no contribution. Nothing there was his, and the beginning before Shippo was shaky at best.

"Kagome! Dinner!" Mrs. Higurashi yelled.

_Dang, it was just getting to the Band of Seven..._

Souta was rambling on about school and the awesome sports events, so Kagome didn't have to worry about talking. She just sat and ate quietly. _I guess I am not taking my time reading this, but still. I know what happened..._

Finishing early, Kagome asked to be excused and walked back up to her room to continue reading.

She had finished the first part long ago, but it didn't matter, she needed to know. Besides it was Friday, she didn't need to do all of her homework tonight.

Within the next two hours, Kagome managed to read up to where they were at now.

"Alright, Kagome, moment of truth..."

_And so, the final battle soon came. The battle that determined everything. _

_Inuyasha was in his casual battle stance with Tetsusaiga drawn with one hand, but you could see he was tense. His teeth were grinding, his eyes burning, and his grip on Tetsusaiga was tightening. He also had something to protect, the miko, the one he so desperately loved. She was standing beside him with her arrow knocked, ready to go. They both had the determination to survive this, alive. _

_The monk and the demon slayer were, too, side by side, both ready to fight. The slayer with her large boomerang bone, and the monk with his staff and sutras. They too, were determined to live._

_Our other companions, the fire cat, the kitsune, and the demon slayer's younger brother, were not present, we requested them to stay with Kaede and the village. After we vanquished Naraku, demons would be rampant, someone had to protect the village._

_The battle proceeded so quickly; it was all a blur. Neither of us, the demon slayer nor monk, completely knew what was going on at all times. We were in charge of the small-fry stray tenticles, odd demons, and so on._

_Eventually, when we were all weary and tired, the battle was over. Naraku's heart was destroyed by a combination of the miko's arrow and Tetsusaiga's backlash wave. The miko walked over, grabbed the remainder of the sacred jewel, purified it and pocketed it. She would fuse it and choose her wish later._

_All of our attention turned to Inuyasha, our beloved hanyou, the moment seemed to go in slow motion. He was bleeding from all sorts of wounds, he was probably protecting his love throughout it all, but this time it was different. Falling to the ground in a pool of his own blood, his love rushed over to him, tears brimming in her eyes._

_"Inuyasha?! Wake up!" she knelt into the pool, and lifted his head into her lap. Begging, "Please, Inuyasha, you can't die now! We've been through too much, please, don't die on me..." _

_We were unable to do anything, we were frozen, all we could do is watch. Then we heard it, our hanyou spoke words that were barely audible, "I'm sorry...'Gome...I love you...Please don't cry..." That was it, he said it. The words no one thought they'd ever hear._

_The miko was in hysterics, "How can I not cry?! I love you, too! I'm crying because I love you, Inuyasha....Please don't leave me..."_

_A rare sight then occurred, he smiled, " 'Gome, thank you...That's all...I ever wanted to hear..."_

_"Inuyasha, don't you dare die on me! Please, I don't know what I'll do!" _

_"Promise me...You'll be...happy...okay? Forget...all...about me...if you have to..." his eyes were pleading with her._

_This left us silent, tears streaming down our faces. There was nothing we could do, it was their moment. _

_The miko couldn't respond, but our hanyou chose to say is last words, "I love you...always will...Tell the...others...my goodbyes as well...And...'Gome...I'm glad...last thing...I see...in...this...world...is...you...." Inuyasha, our hanyou, then closed his golden eyes, that were once so full of life, for the very last time._

_We both slid to our knees, we hadn't just witnessed that. We won, we got the last of the Sacred Jewel, but we hadn't won without compensation._

_The monk uncovered his right hand, and all he saw was a normal hand, his curse was gone. Naraku was dead. His life was was safe for the moment and he almost sighed with relief, but he glanced over towards his best friend lying dead in his own blood and his love crying next to his remains. The monk felt he had gotten his freedom at the cost of his friend's life, and that was not something that comforted him. For the first time in a long time, the monk burst into tears._

_The demon slayer just stared, she had seen so much death. Now that her younger brother had finally been retrieved, she lost another instead. This burned deep, he died protecting them all. If only...If only..._

_After what seemed hours, the remaining trio couldn't cry any longer, but they stayed in complete silence as respect for their fallen comrade._

_Picking up the hanyou and carrying his cold body on his back, the monk started to walk towards the village, and the two remaining followed. Smelling blood, the monk wanted to draw back, but he couldn't. The miko drew Tetsusaiga, sheathed it, and drew it into her. It was all she had left of the one she had so long loved. The very movement itself told us that she wasn't sure what to do, she didn't want anything more than his presence. Unfortunately, that was the one thing she could never have again._

_When they reached Kaede's village, the busy life of the townspeople all stopped and watched in silence. The four had returned, all covered in blood, and one of them was down._

_Kaede, the kitsune, and the demon slayer's little brother came out of the hut to investigate the silence. What they saw shook them._

_"Inuyasha's dead?" the kitsune asked while tears were welling up in his eyes._

_The monk nodded, and laid the hanyou down. They would prepare a grave soon._

_"You big idiot, how could you go and die on us!" he was pounding the ground out of frustration and sadness._

_Walking over in silence, the miko placed Tetsusaiga next to the kitsune and lifted him into her arms. All of us needed that right now, something to hold onto when life came crashing down._

_"Why'd he have to die?" Even though the kitsune wasn't sure how to admit it, he loved the hanyou in almost a fatherly way. The miko and hanyou were like his second parents._

_Kaede and the demon slayer's younger brother stood on the sides and shed a few tears themselves._

_The demon slayer and monk begin digging as close as they could to the Sacred Tree without disturbing the roots. This seemed like an appropriate place._

_The funeral was held shortly afterwards, and everyone was silent. No one could cry anymore, no matter how much they felt they needed to. Holding onto Tetsusaiga, she remembered the locket she had given him, he'd be buried with that, but she'd be keeping Tetsusaiga, no one would be allowed to use it except him._

_Kaede placed a small simple marker rock with his name simply carved into it on top of his grave. "May ye rest in peace, Inuyasha."_

_We all returned to Kaede's hut, and the corner where Inuyasha always sat was left vacant. _

_"So, what do ye plan to do now?" She couldn't believe the recent events, that cocky, stubborn hanyou dying so easily._

_The miko was still covered in dried blood, it was her constant painful reminder, and replied calmly, "I want to wish the Sacred Jewel away. Gone."_

_No one objected, in fact it would probably be best if that were to happen._

_"Are..you going to stay?" the kitsune asked the miko, she was technically his adopted mother._

_"I'm sorry, I really don't think I can...I'm sorry, I just can't..." Newly found tears cascaded down her face._

_The kitsune immediately understood, if she were to stay, she'd be constantly reminded, and it would kill her inside. _

_"I understand, but don't forget about us? Alright? Promise me, please?" he begged while more tears slid down his face._

_"I promise, I can't forget about any of you, no matter what, I won't. I love you all, and I'll miss you guys, really. I hope you all have a happy life. Inuyasha says farewell as well..." she sighed, this was getting hard._

_So we all said our farewells, it was painful. Two people we cherished so closely gone in a single day. We saw her off to where we could, she left us with a 'pick-ture' of her and Inuyasha, that was all we had left. _

_The years passed, and we all still visited Inuyasha's grave talking to him, just as we were sure she was._

_The monk and the demon slayer eventually married and had many children, the children's uncle carried on the family trade, demon slaying, Kaede died after a long life, and the kitsune learned more tricks and eventually found himself a wife._

_Everyone but those two seemed to get their happy ending. What happened to the two of them, we do not know. Unfortunately, I fear we never will._

That was the end.

By now, Kagome was crying hard, she couldn't think straight anymore. What if there really was a grave on shrine grounds? What if the marker had just been moved, or turned over? She didn't know, but she knew she had to go to the Feudal Era, back to Inuyasha.

End of Chapter 1

***A/n : I'm so tired! I'm seeing daylight out my window! Anyways, was I the only one who cried? (After Lily read it, she did too) I hope not...I was the one writing this and I had to drink a gallon of water to keep myself hydrated. This isn't school mode either, I was happy when I started this, then it got sad...However, I don't think I could posssibly leave it like this. So if you want to see the next chapter sometime soon, which I guarantee will be happier, please review! It will make me happy, which leaves to me posting a happier chapter, which in turn, should make you happier. :D

~Mitzuki-chan


	2. Tears

***A/n : My, my, I didn't think I'd get such positive feedback! (Really guys, those were nouns and adjectives I didn't think I'd hear!) Sorry if I made you cry. This chap should be a little happier. Hope you all enjoy!

***Disclaimer : Ummm, I don't own Inuyasha. How could I? I'm working hard on getting into my choice high school, I don't even hold a job (volunteer work doesn't count!)

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One Day in Social Studies Class

Chapter 2 : Tears

Her eyes were fogged from her tears, but since she knew no one was still awake, she had to write a note. Tearing a piece from her notebook, Kagome quickly scrawled "Feudal Era ~Kagome" on it, and left it on the kitchen counter where she knew her mother would find it.

Going into another fit of hysterics as she replayed the last few pages in her mind, Kagome grabbed her textbook, exited through the front door, and ran out to the well house. Immersing herself in the bright shimmering lights, the miko returned to the Feudal Era. To the one she loved.

Climbing out in record time, she stood up to her full height, and dropped her book when she saw Inuyasha standing face-to-face with her. His voice was softer than usual, "Kagome, why are you...Oomf!"

Kagome ran straight into him, and wrapped her arms around him tightly. She never wanted to let go again, if she did, she felt she'd never be able to do this again. That she'd lose him forever, just like her textbook foretold.

Unable to get his point through the first time around, Inuyasha asked again while he lightly draped his arms around her, "Kagome, why are you crying?"

Her grip tightened, and in turn, so did his. Somehow, she managed to croak out an answer, "Not...going...to let...that...hap...pen..."

The hanyou slightly tensed, "Kagome, let what happen...?"

She continued to cry, this was the hardest part, "I'm...not...gonna...let you...die..."

_What is Kagome talking about? _"Kagome, listen to me, I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere..."

Kagome relinquished her hold around him, but now folded her arms flat against his chest while his arms remained there. "It...it's true! San...go...Miro...ku...Ship...po...they wouldn't lie!"

_What's going on here?_ "Kagome, what's all of this about?!" He slightly squeezed her as a form of comfort.

She cleared her throat and wiped the tears from her eyes, and took a deep breath but her voice still shook, "I...got an assignment...in social studies...and it was to read...a section...of this story...called 'The Tale of Inuyasha'...it was written...by Sango, Miroku, and Shippo...and it covered all of our adventures...and in the end..." she teared up once more, "after we killed Naraku...you died." Clinging to his haori, she let more tears fall.

"Kagome..." he wasn't sure what to say. Who would, after hearing that once you kill your enemy, you die? Better yet, how could you find a thing to say after the one you love tells you that? "Is this the book?"

Nodding, the two awkwardly walked, or rather Inuyasha walked and he half-dragged Kagome, towards the well. Inuyasha let go of Kagome, and bent down to pick up the textbook. Flipping through it, he marveled, "Kagome, there is absolutely nothing written in here."

"What?" she finally let go of him and snatched the book from his hands, "But I can read it just fine!"

Inuyasha grabbed hold of the book and swooped up Kagome, holding her bridal style, "Come on, Kagome, I think you should get some rest..."

At first, Kagome resisted, but eventually she gave in, she was tired.

Inuyasha walked back to Kaede's hut and tried to lay Kagome on one of the makeshift beds, but alas, she wouldn't let him go, even in sleep. _Fine, Kagome, we'll do it your way..._

Dropping the empty book, he then slid himself down in a corner and leaned back into it with Kagome in his arms. What if what she said really was true? What if he really will die after the battle with Naraku? _Oh, Kagome..._He rested his head on hers and inhaled, her scent always calmed him down. Eventually, it managed to lull him to sleep.

~The next morning~

"What do you think happened?" Sango wondered aloud when she saw Inuyasha and Kagome sleeping together in the corner of the hut.

Miroku was thinking the exact same thing, "Maybe Lady Kagome came back in the middle of the night? Why would she do that? And why does it look like she's been crying?"

Shippo then jumped onto Miroku's shoulder and gave his input, "But look, she's clutching onto him.."

Inuyasha slowly woke up to the noise, "Gah, what's going on here?"

Sango and Miroku glanced at each other then back at him, "We'd like to ask you the same question..."

Looking down at the weight on his chest, he saw Kagome. "Oh yeah...She came back last night crying, and she hasn't let go since..." Inuyasha lifted his arm and pointed towards her hands which had a firm grip around him, then continued, "She said something about that book..." His clawed index finger pointed to the textbook resting on the ground next to them.

Picking it up, the monk thumbed through it and reached the same conclusion Inuyasha did, "But there's nothing written in here..."

"Exactly," Inuyasha agreed.

Kagome woke, realized her surroundings, and clung on tighter. Last night's trauma still got her.

Sango got down on her knees, and asked, "Kagome, what's wrong?"

Quietly she said, "It's all written in the book..."

"But Kagome, there's nothing written in the book, see?" Sango grabbed the textbook from Miroku, and flipped through the pages in front of Kagome. "See, there's nothing written here."

"But I can see it!" Kagome relinquished her hold on Inuyasha, but still remained sitting in his lap. She was ready to grab the book and read something to them if necessary.

"Kagome, what is exactly written in this book?" Miroku had a theory.

"It's a book with stories from this time..." Kagome trailed off in a solemn, cold voice.

"That's probably it. If we were able to see it, it would give us an unfair advantage. So that means, that everything written in this book is true..." Miroku explained.

Everyone nodded, it made perfect sense.

Kagome's eyes widened, even though she already knew it was the truth, this seemed to confirm it further. "If it's all true...then he really does...ddddie..."

"Wait, who dies?" Shippo asked. _What kind of thing has Kagome gotten her hands on?_

She drew herself back into Inuyasha's chest, and whispered, "Inu...ya...sha..."

Since everyone was straining their ears to hear, they caught it. Sango was the first to speak, "Wait, what?"

Kagome drew in a breath, "It was written by the three of you after Naraku..."

The four just remained silent while Kagome picked up the book and started reading the final battle scene. Even if Inuyasha's last words were embarrassing, they had to know. However, she chose to exclude the part after she left the Feudal Era.

And so she read for the next hour. No matter how often she had to pause and let her voice even out, she knew she had to get through it. With Inuyasha's arms around her, she was conflicted, did this make it sadder or does it make it easier?

When Kagome said she loved him too, Inuyasha felt flushed._ She does? That might explain why she still won't let go..._

During Kagome's reading of Inuyasha's last words, he squeezed her shoulders a bit and almost half-smiled, but considering the fact she was describing his death, he couldn't. He also realized that Kagome now knew, and that was probably a good thing, the only time he thought he'd ever have the courage to admit that would be on his deathbed.

By the end of the story, all but Inuyasha were crying. "That's so sad!"

"Keh, why are you all crying over this? I'm not gonna die, that's that," Inuyasha scowled. Seeing Kagome experience this much sadness from a story she read, he knew now to fight hard with everything he had and he'd have to watch his back carefully. He couldn't leave her alone like that.

Everyone stared at him, how could he be this strong during a moment like this? Kagome looked up at him with tears still brimming in her eyes, "You're sure?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha sighed.

Even if it wasn't much of a confirmation, it was enough to calm everyone down.

"Alright," Kagome took a deep breath, "I need to get my bag, I left it back home..."

Inuyasha didn't know how relieved he was to hear that, he could finally get up, and, you know? Move.

"Come on, lets go," Kagome got up, and dragged Inuyasha out by his hand.

_This actually might be good for them...If he survives..._ the three smiled and shuttered. Such a fragile thing, "if he survives", was all this depended on.

End of Chapter 2

***A/n : Hope you enjoyed it (it wasn't my best either! Gomen!)! Sorry it was a little late, but I hope it was worth it! I'm going back to school Monday, and I've still got some homework to do, so next update should be on Tuesday or Thursday? I'm thinking Tuesday because since the student council isn't running a fundraiser at the moment, the treasurer doesn't have to do much! (Our last fundraiser made over $200 in pennies alone...) Then again, my teachers love giving homework...Oh, and the whole thing about who can read the book will be covered in the next chapter! The question, "If prople from the Feudal Era can't read it, why can Kagome read it to them?" will be answered! Thanks for reading, now please review!

~Mitzuki-chan


	3. Kami Sama & Pastries!

***A/n : Hiya! Sorry I took so long to update! The evil PTA stuck another fundraiser to us (without my knowledge, and I'm treasurer for crying out loud!), and I was rushing to sell all this crap (thankfully, me and my double counter don't have to count it. It's the PTA's problem, I just have to sign off on it!). Then in PE, I tripped and broke my right wrist. I'm right handed so it's taking longer to write and type everything...That's about it.

***Disclaimer : Really? Oh come on...We've established this. I'm 13...There's no way in hell I could own Inuyasha.

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Last time...

"Come on, lets go," Kagome got up, and dragged Inuyasha out by his hand.

_This actually might be good for them...If he survives..._ the three smiled and shuttered. Such a fragile thing, "if he survives", was all this depended on.

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One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 3 : Kami-sama & Pastries!

"If people from the Feudal Era can't read Kagome's textbook, how come Kagome can read it to them?" a servant to heaven asked as he looked down and back to earth. Though there was a thick cloud cover, he could see with great precision and accuracy.

Kami-sama laughed, almost as if he had asked a stupid question, "If an unattended item were to be left, and if it were found by certain people, then it would send our little world into chaos, correct?"

He nodded and looked back up to her for more information.

"Now, you see Kagome, you can see the aura surrounding her. It's abnormally good for a human, she'd sooner die than do something that was against her morals. This is why she is permitted to travel through the times. Anything she changes will somehow always work out for the better of mankind. She may have broken the jewel, but it all eventually leads to the permanent vanquish of Naraku. If she hadn't broken the jewel, Naraku would still be living and seek power through other methods," she said his name as if it were acid on her tongue, one of her creations, going so bad...

"But what about her trying to save that hanyou? Wouldn't that throw time off?" he asked, none of this made any sense to him.

"If she does in fact succeed, unlike her former, it would only create a new bloodline that wouldn't have existed and a cash of new experiences into the lives of others. Nothing that she would do in this situation would cause the world havoc or dismay, I can see it. I've always wanted this to go well; I even shed a tear at the first time this was attempted..." she sighed and looked down.

Kami-sama's curse; being unable to affect your creations. No bending of wills, or changing of fates. Simply because her creations had minds of their own, they chose their own fate. The various paths could be seen, but to which way they go, was unknown until they got there. With that, Kami-sama could just sit and watch. You could see, but you couldn't scream. There'd be no point, no one who could change it could hear you.

_I hope they survive this time, all of them. I've only seen a few as worthy as them..._

~Back on Earth~

The two emerged from the well and into Kagome's time. If they hadn't been in the Feudal Era, they wouldn't have noticed the rancid smell of pollution and the dim blue of the sky. On reflex, Inuyasha wrinkled his nose in disgust.

Kagome soon made her way into the house where her mother was cooking, "Oh, hi, Kagome, I didn't think you'd be back so soon." This is one thing Kagome loved about her mother, she didn't ask.

"I forgot my bag," Kagome simply answered. "Ooooooh, something smells good."

Mrs. Higurashi smiled, she was hoping someone would say that. "I hope so, it's a new recipe..."

The timer rang and Mrs. Higurashi grabbed her oven mitts, slid them on, and removed her pastries from the oven. Inhaling the scent, all three of them sighed. They smelled so good!

"We'll all try some after they cool off, alright?" Mrs. Higurashi could barely wait herself. She'd been working on this recipe for a week or so now. "So, Kagome, why don't you go get your stuff packed?"

"Okay!" Kagome rushed up the stairs to grab the obnoxiously large bag.

Inuyasha found himself staring at the pastries with drips of drool forming at the corners of his mouth. A voice took him out of his pastry-induced trance, "Want to try some now?"

He nodded; they smelled so good! Mrs. Higurashi smirked, she wouldn't mind having him for a son-in-law; one she could have test her cooking and probably wouldn't complain. That and dog-eared grandchildren isn't out of the question either. _Hee, cute!_

"Alright, then." She pulled out a spoon, and removed a considerable piece of one of the pastries. "Here, careful it might be hot." She extended it out towards his mouth.

Chomping down, he removed the bit of pastry from the spoon, and ate it. The fact that it was scalding didn't bother him in the least; not only did it smell good it tasted good, too. The breaded part was light and buttery, and the creamy filling melted in his mouth. "Mmm."

Mrs. Higurashi blew on and tasted a bit herself and thought, _Wow, I outdid myself this time..._

Kagome came down hefting the enormous bag, "Oooh can I try some?"

Her mother cut a piece for her daughter and gave it to her, "Wow, mama, it's good!"

Inuyasha nodded in compliance and continued staring at the pastries.

"Well, I'm glad you two like it!" She had a pleased look on her face, she had finally gotten it right!

***A/n : Lol, I had to include this. Lily was baking, and this was the first time I had seen her bake. Well one morning I woke up to find that the house smelled like a bakery. Walking out to the kitchen I saw some cookies, a cake, and these cookie-cake things on cooling racks on the counter. She picked up a cool cookie-cake thing and held it out in front of me, so naturally I took a bite, and it was the best thing I ever ate! :D She asked, "How is it?" I nodded and gave a 'It's great' expression and she smiled. "Good, I'd been working on these since before you got here..." Everything she made was good, and it's all her own recipe. She said one day she'd teach me. ^_^ Not quite sure what the cookie-cake things are though...They were good though.

"It's probably best you two got going now, and here take some for everyone. I made plenty."

~Back in the Feudal Era~

"These are amazing! You're telling me your mother made these, Kagome?" Sango marveled as she held the pastry in front of her. She squeezed it and the creamy liquid was oozing out in a slow, meticulous flow.

"Mmhmm..." Kagome answered while savoring her own.

Inuyasha, on the other hand, had already eaten several, and he was eyeballing Shippo's. Extending his clawed hand to grab it, Shippo realized Inuyasha's intentions and pulled the half-eaten pasty back. Then becoming more aggressive, Shippo was forced to run.

"Inuyasha stop it!" Kagome yelled.

The two continued to run around in circles around the three, and Miroku took the opportunity to snatch Shippo's pastry. Jamming it in his mouth as fast as possible, the hanyou and youkai immediately stopped and looked at each other giving the look of "truce-till-we-kick-his-ass?" Once Miroku saw their evil glares, he got up and stared running for his life.

Watching those three chasing each other in circles made Kagome, Sango, and Kirara laugh so hard they were rolling around on the ground.

"Okay, one, two, three!" Kagome and Sango stuck their legs out and made the three trip and fall flat on their faces.

"Now, now boys, stop fighting over food," Sango tsked with laughter shining through her voice.

"Yeah," Kagome's voice cracked.

The boys turned to each other and smirked. Time to get the girls.

Inuyasha went chasing after Kagome, who stood no chance against the hanyou's speed and was caught within a few brief seconds. The two were sent flying to the ground thanks to the momentum created. Skidding on the ground, Kagome landed on top of Inuyasha. Sharing a brief moment of awkwardness, they both wound up laughing hard.

"Hey, you laughed. I don't think I've seen you do that before..." Kagome trailed off, oblivious to the other two scenarios.

"Really?" Inuyasha asked, had he really not laughed? Then again, he couldn't quite remember the last time he did.

"Really," Kagome grinned, at least she had changed that.

Continuing to laugh, the two turned to watch the other four.

Miroku was chasing Sango, and Sango eventually got wrapped in his arms. Within seconds, Sango's face turned beet red, and she smashed her first into the side of his head. Walking away, she muttered something about "that fucking pervert..."

Shippo was chasing Kirara, and soon jumped on her back with his arms around her neck. Kirara, who wasn't fond of his weight on her smaller form, transformed into her largest form. Then with one swift motion, she bucked him off her back, put one paw across his chest thus pinning him to the ground. She made a noise that sounded similar to "heh" and everyone broke out into another fit of laughter.

Kagome immediately sighed as she thought, _I hope the good times will last..._

End of Chapter 3

***A/n : Lol, I kinda sounded like like Lily at certain parts in this chap! I guess I sound like her when I try to be sillier. Anyways hope you liked it! Sorry it was late, broken wrists are hard to type with. Now that you've read, please review! :D

~Mitz


	4. Confessions & Changes

***A/n : Lol, back! Sorry I lied! It's Monday not mid week ish! Forgive me, my teachers were being incredibly cruel homework-wise! Thanks for all the reviews and support! As promised here is the semi-funny story of my wrist, if you don't care just skip lol:

Okay, it was PE, and we were playing badminton. Me and a friend were playing singles (we're both pretty good with our shots, so we got bored, and came up with these things we called "multiples drills". This is were we took turns sending several shots over at each other and we had to hit them all back and score in the process. Well, if you can. Lol.) There was another team on the court next to us who was brand new to the sport, and they tried playing a game before they could even grip their rackets correctly. While my friend was launching these shots at me, one girl on the other court practically slung her racket onto my side of the court. There was this one birdie that I had to dive for, and instead of the solid, sturdy gym floor, my foot caught on the racket. My wrist was turned at a weird angle (my partner delivers some weird shots that are easier to hit at a funny angle...), and as I fell to the ground my wrist hit first. Then if that didn't do it, my entire body weight collapsed onto it. I didn't scream or cry, I couldn't make a noise. Apparently my face turned white though. The girl who had caused it was genuinely sorry (in fact, she was practically in tears), and I turned to her and smirked, "Well now I have to practice with my left hand." That kind of perked her up, it was an accident after all (but she still rapidly apologizes every time she sees me--thankfully only in halls and PE--...Can't make her stop either...). It makes writing and everything else difficult (brace thingy covers majority of hand too..), but my left hand is fairly okay (acceptable at minimal standards) at everything my right can do. So in case any of you are wondering, I'll be typing for the majority with my left hand. Funny thing is, if that had happened just a second later, this whole ordeal could have been avoided. lol. (That was long...and one giant paragraph...oops) However it isn't as bad as it could have been (plus I'm a fast healer!), and I'll be able to participate in my Christmas orchestra concert (with a few weeks to make sure I've relearned everything lol)! :D

Enough of my freak accident stories! On with the chapter!

*Disclaimer : If I were indeed Rumiko Takahashi, I wouldn't have broken my wrist in a freak PE accident. (And I just realized I used the word "tripped" last chap, I meant "slipped" lol). If I am not Rumiko Takahashi what are you doing thinking I own Inuyasha?

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Last time...

Kagome immediately sighed as she thought, _I hope the good times will last..._

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One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 4 : Confessions & Changes

Untangling herself from Shippo's grasp, Kagome carefully set the kitsune down amongst her blankets and tucked him in. Tip-toeing as quietly as she possibly could, she managed to escape the hut without waking anyone up.

The thin waning crescent hung high in the sky giving out an eerie glow, the air was crisp, and the stars shone with a brilliant light. A sudden gust of wind made her shiver, and she felt she needed to get to her destination quickly. Jumping down from his perch on the Goshinkobu, the hanyou landed directly in front of her. Cocking his head slightly, he asked, "What are you doing up?"

Kagome looked up at him. This was something she had been wondering ever since she read the book, "Inuyasha, is what I read in the book true? What you said?" Her eyes glistened with hope.

Shifting in place, his eyes lost their place on her face. How could she ask so directly like that? "Uh," _Oh come on! Stop being a pile of chicken shit, and admit it like a man!, _"Yes, it was all true..." He mumbled. _Very manly...Oh shut up!_

Kagome somehow managed to catch it all, and on reflex she hugged him. Inuyasha was unsure of what to do; was he supposed to hug her too, or was he supposed to just stand there?

Deciding that this was the safest response, he half-hugged her. Inhaling her sweet scent, he instantly relaxed his awkwardness into a full embrace.

_This is all going by so quickly..._

"Inuyasha..." Kagome started as she looked up and into his face which the moon's faint glow calmly lit.

"Hm?" his voice grew softer.

"You know we can't tell anyone about this. Naraku will find out, and he'll use it against us..." she sighed with regret in her voice.

Thinking about it, he nodded in agreement. This had to be kept a secret.

***A/n : But Naraku does know! He knew before they did...Lol, I don't think they know that...

The wind blew and sent shivers down Kagome's spine. Without thinking she drew closer into his arms. _Warm..._

In seconds Kagome was asleep. _Wonder what made her fall asleep so quickly?_

Lifting her in his arms he took her back to the hut, and to his relief, she let go when he tucked her in. Adding his haori onto her shoulders for extra warmth, he placed Shippo in her lap, and left back for the Goshinkobu; he had a lot to think about.

~The next morning~

Kagome woke to find herself in the hut with Inuyasha's haori wrapped around her shoulders.

"Mornin', Kagome!" Shippo piped in his usual perk.

While rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, Kagome asked, "Morning Shippo, where'd everyone go?"

"Well, Miroku and Kaede were asked to preform a funeral for an elder in the village, so naturally Sango and Kirara went too, and well, Inuyasha, I really don't know where he went. He left his haori with you, so he shouldn't have gone far..."

_Where'd he go? I hope he's alright, but he just probably left to go fish or something...Maybe he's thinking about last night?_

"You already eat?"

Shippo nodded 'yes', and Kagome smiled; she didn't have to cook anything unless she was actually hungry. Soon he pulled out the crayons Kagome had given him and began to draw on some spare parchment left lying around.

A thought hit Kagome. _Wait, what if the book changed?_

Pulling out the book, she began to read the area that she had sticky-noted as "The Final Battle" :

_It had all happened that night, Inuyasha wandered off on his own. This wasn't abnormal for him, so we just ignored it when we woke up in the wee hours of the morning. The monk and Kaede had been summoned to preform a funeral for an elder on the outskirts of the village, and the demon slayer had gone with to monitor his behavior. We had left the fox and miko behind._

_( Like today... )*_

*A/n : ( ....... ) is Kag's thoughts as she's reading.

_When we arrived back at midday, we were shocked to find that he still wasn't there. All of us, especially the miko, were concerned. Where could he have gone? What could he be up to?_

_So we searched the entire day only to find him when the darkness finally began to close in. He was near a destroyed village that was about five hours south of Kaede's. He was human with scratches and wounds covering his body, and lying face-first in a pool of his own frothy, poisoned blood._

_( Tonight's the new moon... )_

_He was alive, but just barely. The miko tried to save him with all she had, but he couldn't take it anymore and soon died with his last words still fresh in our heads to this day, "...I love you..."_

Without bothering to read the rest, she dropped the book. Kagome jumped up, grabbed her bag, and got onto her bike that hadn't been ridden in months. "Ummm, Kagome, where are you going?"

Just arriving, Miroku and Sango asked, "Yeah, Kagome, where are you going?"

"We need to find Inuyasha!"

***A/n : I was gonna cut it here, but I realized I had only given like 1.1k words till this point excluding my A/ns. So here's more lol!

"Wait, he's still not back?" Miroku felt an unusual pang of danger lurking ahead in his gut.

Shippo answered with a 'no', and Kagome strapped her bag to the back of her bike.

Sango wasn't sure what was going on, "Wait, so..."

Kagome boarded her bike while she said, "If we don't go to that village to the south now, Inuyasha's dying tonight!"

Their eyes widened with the look that says "wait, what?!"

"It's all in the book, now come on!" Kagome began riding at full speed while Shippo hopped onto her shoulder and clung on tightly to avoid falling off.

Kirara fully transformed and Sango and Miroku got on ready to follow.

~Five hours later~

The sun was beginning to set, and Kagome thought, _Come on Inuyasha, we've got to find you..._

"Ah, I hear something!" Shippo cried.

"There's an evil aura coming from over there!" Miroku shouted as he reached for some sutras.

Running to their full speed they reached the battle scene.

A large snake demon reaching 30 feet in height hissed, "I'm hungryyy, you ssshhhalll be my nexxxt meaal..."

"No way," Inuyasha retorted back and drew Tetsusaiga only to find that it was left in it's rusty useless form. "Fuck," he cursed. There was no chance of his winning this.

The snake, faster than what the eyes could see, struck at Inuyasha's upper chest.

Taking his time injecting the poison, Kagome chose the moment to draw her bow and shoot the snake clear through the side of the head. Disintegrating, the hanyou in human form fell to the harsh, cold ground.

Dropping everything she was carrying (even Shippo! *gasp*), Kagome raced over to her fallen love. As he convulsed, she bent down and laid him on her lap. His tremors lessened, and he let his violet eyes open a smidge, " 'Gome?"

"Yes, Inuyasha, I'm here." _I am too late, aren't I? _Tears brimmed in her eyes.

" 'Gome, 'lease make it stop...It 'urts..." Fresh burning blood oozed from his wounds at a rapid rate.

"Alright, I'll try..." she sniffed and undid his remaining white top. His injuries bubbled and hissed. "Sango, can you bring my bag?"

Sango didn't say a thing, but still grabbed the ever-expanding bag and brought it over to Kagome at request. Stepping back, she continued to watch the situation.

Kagome dug around until she found what she was looking for, "Here Inuyasha, drink this..."

Lifting his head, Kagome tilted the tonic down his throat. "That should help..."

"Guh." It wasn't working. " 'Gome...please..." he begged; this was pain he hadn't experienced before as a human.

Rummaging around, Kagome managed to find some balm Kaede had prepared. _Please let this work... _"Don't worry Inuyasha, I won't let anything happen to you...Now this might be a little cold..."

It didn't bother him much in the temperature department, but the puncture wounds got to him. The bubbling lessened, and his breathing slowed to an almost normal pace. Pulling out some bandages, she wrapped him up tightly.

The others were unsure of how to react during these events and just remained standing and staring.

***A/n : Am I crazy(er) or is that all they do in these situations?

" 's ccoldd..." he muttered and shuttered while he tried to condense into a ball on Kagome's lap.

Pulling out his haori from the yellow backpack, she draped it over him. "Just stay with me, Inuyasha, don't fall asleep."

Inuyasha's eyes opened a little more. " 'Not goin' 'nywhere. Didn' I tell you that?"

She was unsure of how to respond, so she changed the subject instead, "Do you think you can be moved?"

Feeling the remaining effects of the poison, Inuyasha moaned, "Yes."

_He doesn't really sound up to it, but I think he wants out of here._

"Lets have you get on Kirara...Sango you can sit with me. Come on, lets get up..." Kagome said as she eased out from under him and carefully began to lift him.

"No, I'll go with you, 'Gome..." Inuyasha got up, but slumped down onto her shoulder.

"But..." She looked at him; he wasn't joking and there would be no convincing. "Fine..."

Putting his haori around his shoulders, she picked up his bloody undershirt and her bag. Helping him walk over to where she had left her bike, she got on and he followed with slow precision. Shippo secured the bag and held on.

After every bump in the road, Inuyasha grunted, but that just made him tighten his grip on the girl sitting in front of him. He knew with Kagome sitting next to him, he'd survive the night.

End of Chapter 4

***A/n : Lol, I lengthened the storyline a bit more than most of you were probably expecting (plus this part is essential! ^_^ I'm not telling why...anyone care to guess?), but this isn't going to be a story that resolves easily; I'm expecting many more chapters to come. Sorry again that it was late, and well, it wasn't it my best...but there's more to come! Please review! All reviewers get a sneak peek of the next chappy this time! I'll try to update soon, but we've been getting so much work and I'm trying to keep up my grades to maintain my rank's footing in all my classes.

~Mitz


	5. A Day With The Social Studies Teacher

***A/n : Hiya! Thanks for all of the reviews! Although, I've been getting some alerts with no reviews attached. To all of you who do that, please just review. If you like my story enough to put it on your story alerts or your favorites list, you should want me to update sooner, right? Well, reviews are good motivation to send out an update. All of us authors put our ideas out there, and well it makes us happy to hear what you've got to say. So please, just review. Then again, I'm sorry it's later than expected; school gives a lot of work and my teachers are purposely sabotaging us! I'm filing a complaint...Anyways, all who review (instead of a date because of my bad schedule...) will get a sneak peek at the next chapter!

*Disclaimer : If you think I own Inuyasha, I'll read a poem to you I heard a little girl tell a little boy today :

Roses are red; violets are blue; sugar is sweet and so are you. But the roses are wilted; the violets are dead; and the bowl is empty; and so is your head!

Lol, that made me laugh, but I felt bad for the little boy lol. I just committed it to memory :P

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Last time...

After every bump in the road, Inuyasha grunted, but that just made him tighten his grip on the girl sitting in front of him. He knew with Kagome sitting next to him, he'd survive the night.

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One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 5 : A Day With the Social Studies Teacher

Kagome was already at school, and Inuyasha was left sitting in her room all alone. The clock on the opposite wall ticked and tocked with a tedious precision.

_Kagome made me come...All because I'm still not 100% healed...Isn't 56% enough? Wait! I almost completely forgot the reason why I got this injury! My mother's ring...Heh, I remember the day she told me, "When you find some special girl you know you want to marry, come get my ring and give it to her." Then when she died, she left it in my care, so I left it with Myoga...Unsure of what to do with it..._

***A/n : Awwww! :D

From a small slit in his undershirt, Inuyasha pulled out the small ring. _I'm glad that I didn't lose it, there's no blood, and Kagome didn't find it...I bet she doesn't even know about my hidden pockets in my undershirt and haori..._

Leaning back into her bed, he admired the small, green gem that so carefully adorned the silver. What did his mother say it was; grossular garnet? His father had bought it from a trader and given it to her when they eloped. It was the lovely mint color that it produced, and for such a small gem, it exploded in color._I just hope Kagome likes it, but when should I give it to her? _

***A/n : I spent an hour picking that out. Look it up, it's gorgeous! :D

_Ugh, I'm tired..._Inuyasha slipped the ring into his hidden pocket and drifted off into the land of sleep.

~With Ms. Ito, the Social Studies Teacher~

_Gah, there's just something off, and I can't put my finger on it. _Ms. Ito sighed, maybe her next class would help her figure it out? The lot walked into the room thirty seconds shy of being tardy, and she smiled, "Good morning, class!"

A few answered with an unenthusiastic "good morning", and most just didn't even bother to reply.

After mentally noting the fact that after every time she greets these kids, she dies a little inside, Kagome rushed into the classroom. "Good morning, Ms. Ito! I'm sorry, I just finished having one of my tests graded..."

She half-smiled; the one child who greeted her in the mornings seldom showed. Might as well enjoy her pleasant presence while she could. Motioning, she said, "Please sit down, Kagome, it's fine."

The lesson droned on as Ms. Ito aquired everyone's opinion on her favorite story, but something seemed wrong about it. The story didn't end like this; it just didn't sound right. For once, she begged the for the bell to ring; she just didn't feel like doing this today. Maybe she should go home and rest?

The bell rang with it's merry chime and everyone was packed up and ready to leave in a second flat.

_Yay, no more classes today. I can just go home, go lay down, and rest. _Shoving some stacks of paper into her briefcase, Ms. Ito left for her car. She felt like she was in a trance while she began to walk off the school's campus. Running into something solid she fell with it down the small, strategically placed flight of stairs.

"Oompf..." a voice groaned from underneath her.

Realizing the reason her fall was so soft was because she had sent another person with her, she apologized profusely, "Oh my, sir, I'm really sorry!" When she got up she saw that he was young; hardly a "sir", but the silver hair that sprawled out on the sidewalk had thrown her for a loop. "Wait, you're not one of our students. What are you doing here?" A red hat was on the ground, and she picked it up. "Is this yours?"

Helping him up, he answered, "I'm waiting for someone, and yes." Putting it on his head, he thanked Kami-sama that he knew how to "tuck in" his ears. A curious look appeared on his face as he looked down on his chest; blood was seeping through his white T. Whispering just loud enough for the teacher to hear, "Damn...Kagome's going to kill me..."

"Ah, oh my! Did I do that? I'm so sorry!" she was ready to get on her knees and beg for forgiveness.

"No, I shouldn't even be here. Gah, I'm gonna get an ear load for this one..." Inuyasha trailed off and flinched as he pictured Kagome yelling at him with a red face, but with her voice dripping in concern. He really did hate doing that to her.

"You said 'Kagome' earlier. Are you talking about Ms. Higurashi?" Ms. Ito asked. Maybe this was Kagome's boyfriend?

Inuyasha just nodded as he pondered on his next move. Would he stay and confront Kagome? Go back to the shrine and pretend nothing happened? Better yet, how would he shake this lady?

Interrupting his plans on leaving, he felt the woman grab his arm. "Here come on...Wait, you don't need to go to the hospital right?" He knew that word; "hospital"; Kagome had drilled it into his head that he never should go there, and he shook his head 'no'. "Alright then, I'll just take you to the school nurse, and I think I can get rid of the blood stain on your shirt with some peroxide and scrubbing. You seem completely find with bleeding, so you're okay, right? And how did you get those injuries in the first place?" Her voice had the same amount of concern as Kagome's usually did, and Inuyasha knew he had to answer with something.

He knew that saying, "I got ran through by a snake demon" was out of the question. What was it that Kagome told him to say if someone in her time asked about his injuries? Ah, that's it. "I got hit by a car a while back, and Kagome told me to stay home, but..." he trailed off as he realized he had no reason he cared to admit out loud to this random stranger.

Immediately understanding, she finished his sentence for him, "But you love her, right?"

In spite of the fact he didn't respond, his face showed a blush and it wasn't from the cold. Ms. Ito picked that right up, _so he is her boyfriend! Awww! _

"And I'm sure you also did some Christmas shopping, too?"

Inuyasha cocked his head in confusion, "Christmas?" That was a word he hadn't heard before.

"Never heard of Christmas?"`

"No, I just moved here, and I lived far away from modern civilization so I really haven't heard of much. I'm barely getting used to cars." _Thanks Kagome for your pre-made excuses...You knew I'd get myself in this sort of situation, didn't you?_

"Oh. Well, it's a Western tradition, but we sort of picked it up. Couples like to spend the day together and they exchange gifts," she simply explained as they neared the nurse's office.

_Exchange gifts? The ring...maybe?_

"Here we are." Ms. Ito let go of his arm, and yelled, "Misa!"

A voice responded from inside, "Yeah, Moriko!"

"Lemme in! The door's locked!"

"Oh." After the metallic click of the lock sounded, the door swung open revealing a natural blond with a cute face. "I see why you're here. What happened to him?"

"Well, he said he got hit by a car a while back but he hasn't fully healed, and well my running into him and making him fall down those steps probably didn't help either..." The social studies teacher scratched the back of her head and nervously laughed.

"Ah, my usual space-out spazz, go sit down, would you?" the nurse said as she pointed to a chair in the corner. "Now, you, here, sit up on this counter, would you? And take off you're shirt...We'll make Ms. Spazz over there wash it."

Debating whether or not to trust these women, he figured that they might as well, and took off the white T carefully without knocking off his hat and threw it over towards the social studies teacher.

"Wow, whoever wrapped you up has some talent. If you don't mind my asking, who did it?" Misa began unwrapping the bloody bandages.

"Kagome," Inuyasha mumbled while he stuck his hand into the pocket of his unfamiliar jeans. Why did Mrs. Higurashi make him wear such things?

"That makes sense, if anyone should be good at this it's Ms. Higurashi. Are you her boyfriend?" the nurse was now stopping the bleeding, and rubbing some sort of ointment on his chest.

Water ran in the background as Moriko began washing his shirt, and Inuyasha pretended to be distracted by it to avoid answering the question.

***A/n : Anything in bold is in **English.**

**"I think so. It's really kind of sweet," **the social studies teacher answered for him in English. "Oh, why aren't you in school right now?" she asked Inuyasha.

"Already graduated." _Thank you Kagome..._

"Really, so how old are you?"

_342, so what do I look like in human terms? 17? _"Seventeen."

"You've got some interesting features....silver hair, amber eyes....Why is that? Sorry, I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but I'm just curious," Moriko continued scrubbing and adding a bit of peroxide.

"There's some interesting genes in my family..." _Kagome's good..._

***A/n : There are actual genetic conditions for amber eyes and colorless hair (even at early age). It's kinda of cool to study.

"Ah, and there, all done." Misa smiled at her work, but the necklaces around his neck caught her eye. On looked old and like it couldn't be removed no matter how hard you tried, and the other had a gold chain by the pendant wasn't visible. "You're necklace looks like it's caught up behind you."

"Oh." Inuyasha turned it around, and revealed the little locket and the small green ring. He just couldn't leave it back at Kagome's house where Mrs. Higurashi might find it if she tried to do the laundry.

The water was shut off, and Ms. Ito grabbed a towel and laid it across one of the counters. Then she flattened the shirt on top if it, folded the towel over and started to compress it so the towel would suck up the moisture and it would dry faster.

"What a beautiful ring. Oooh, is it for Ms. Higurashi? Are you two going to get married?" Misa squealed; she loved romance and weddings and everything.

Inuyasha was not sure of how to respond, "Erm, maybe?"

Moriko turned to face him and handed him the blood-free shirt, and her eyes caught the ring as well, "Oh my, it really is gorgeous, and don't worry. We won't tell!"

"Erm, thanks?" he was still unsure of how react around theses women, and he quickly put his T back on.

_Ding-Dong-Ding!_

"Oh, that's the final bell! If you want to catch Ms. Higurashi, go back out to the front entrance!" Misa and Moriko simultaneously exclaimed.

Inuyasha waved a "bye" and left through to door to catch up with Kagome.

"It's good to know Kagome's got someone; I really worry about her sometimes. But does she seem sick to you?" Moriko asked her friend.

"No, she doesn't seem very sick, but then again, her grandfather calls it in. I heard he's getting a bit...errr...old?" Misa sighed, "Besides, how would they be able to pay for it? By selling those little key chain Shikon no Tama things? Don't think so."

"So what does she really have then?"

"I'm not sure, but at least she's got him. He seemed nice enough."

~With Kagome~

"Kagome!" Inuyasha called while waving.

She turned to see her hanyou in modern clothes, "Inuyasha, what are you doing here! I told you to stay home!"

Smirking, "Since when did I ever listen?"

"Good point." _It's still kind of sweet._

He grabbed her school bag and they walked back to the shrine in blissful silence.

Something in a shop window caught Kagome's eye._ I'll have to come back later. I think this year I want to introduce Christmas to everyone..._

End of Chapter 5

***A/n : Hehe, I had to recognize Christmas! Even though the actual Christmas part will before and after the actual thing because my parents are spending Christmas week with me and Lily. We'll be going up north for snow! ^_^ Hehe! It's a little off topic, but this story really needs some fluff before it submerges into the darkness once more (it's a roller coaster but stick with me on this!). Besides, I don't think I'll do an X-mas fic, and I know Lily isn't, so this'll be it lol. And not best update, but I hope you enjoyed! Anyways, please review!

~Mitz


	6. Shopping

***A/n : Hiya! Okay, thank you to all my reviewers. You guys really lighten my mood. Although I got a lot of story alerts without reviews (I got 4 story alerts in the span of 1 minute without a single review in the batch--really on my email they have the exact same time--), and it bugs me. I like to hear from my readers. What did you like; what did you hate? If I don't know, I'm not going to get any better. Plus, reviewers make me want to get through all of my schoolwork (Okay, I get a ton. I'm in the school's top classes with top ranks, participate in almost all the clubs, and I sleep maybe four hours a night. It's hard for me; it just slowly wears me down into a nothingness. Some weekends I do nothing but sleep. Fanfiction is a wonderful outlet--sometimes my only--, so I like reviews. They make me know I actually have some sort of life that is outside of school.) If that didn't convince you, I've got more. I give chapter summaries now to anyone who reviews, and the more details the better! I've let a few things slip to a few reviewers that I probably shouldn't have, and I probably still will do that. Lol. More reviews I get, the happier I am, the faster I do my work, and thus giving me more time to write.

It really improves my writing guys, and I'm a middle schooler. I don't know what high school I'm going to, and if I get into my #1 or #2 pick, my writing skills have to extraordinary. Lol. So please guys, review, it's a big help to me atm.

*Disclaimer : If you are reading this, I am sure you are aware of the fact that you are on a website called fanfiction...Fanfiction is written by fans...not owners...

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Last time...

Something in a shop window caught Kagome's eye._ I'll have to come back later. I think this year I want to introduce Christmas to everyone..._

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One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 6 : Shopping

Now that her hanyou was back in her bed, Kagome gave him his list of rules in which he was to abide by, "Inuyasha, don't get up. I know I didn't bandage that," she pointed to the covering on his chest and continued, "If you are to get up, you are not to leave the main house." Taking the time to send him a serious look, Inuyasha remained quiet as he thought Kagome could transmogrify at any moment. "Mama should bring you food in maybe an hour, alright, so no raiding the larders."

Inuyasha sighed. _I went to her school to pick her up and this is how I'm repaid? I even ran into those weird women...Gah, and where is she going? And with who? Those weird friends of hers? What about Homo...no, that's not it...Hobo...no...Hoho...nope...Hojo? That it? She's going with Hojo! _

Without realizing it, the hanyou growled out of anger at the human man that angered him so. Kagome took notice and implored, "I know you don't want to stay here, but no need to growl at me. You're even baring your fangs a little..."

Looking up, he saw Kagome and stopped growling. "Wasn't growling at you," he muttered and crossed his arms in front of him.

"Alright then, and if you follow the rules, I'll bring you back something. 'Kay?" Kagome smiled and grabbed her purse. As she came close to the room's threshold, Kagome turned back to wave 'bye'. Inuyasha mimicked the gesture as he watched her exit the room.

_Kagome, you better not being going with that Hojo guy..._

Listening for Kagome's friends, he only heard the three normal ones she was always around. _Good...No Hojo..._

Inuyasha was glad he had stuck the ring into his bandages; Kagome had not seen it. Pulling it out, he began to examine it as he thought about this "Christmas" thing.

A sharp knock sounded and the door opened with a jolt. Inuyasha didn't have the time to shove the ring back in his bandages, and Souta's eyes went wide in surprise. "Inuyasha, are you going to marry Kagome?" he asked slowly.

_Again? I don't like where this is going. It's bad enough those weird women know._... "I really don't know..."

Souta was confused, "But aren't you two an item?"

Discombobulation overtook the hanyou, "An item? What?"

"You know, a couple," Souta laughed as he closed the door and sat on the edge of Kagome's bed.

Inuyasha's face developed a shade of red, and he stuttered, "Kinda?"

A fire seemed to erupt in Souta's eyes, revealing a fiery passion. "Kinda? Is that the best you got?! You can't kinda be in a relationship! You are or you aren't!"

Shifting back, Inuyasha grumbled, "It's not that easy."

Souta smirked, "Do you love her?"

_He already saw the ring, can't hurt, can it?_ "Yes."

"Does she love you?" he asked as he shifted closer.

"I think so..." Inuyasha trailed off as he thought about that night where she asked him if the book didn't lie about that, and he chose to change his statement, "I'm pretty sure..." He rose to face Souta. Who knew the squirt could give a good pep talk?

"Now, when are you going to pop the question?" Souta couldn't believe he was having this conversation; was Inu-nii-chan going to be his brother-in-law?

Instead of avoiding the question like he normally would, Inuyasha down right confronted it, "Iono...What exactly is this 'Christmas' thing anyway?"

Souta's eyes brightened and lit up with glee; it was confirmed, Inuyasha will propose! His posture straightened as he replied, "Christmas, that would be perfect! You two could exchange gifts!"

Inuyasha just stared blankly as he thought about this 'Christmas'. A thought swept over him, "Wait, how would I do it?" _And I'm taking advice for a nine year-old..._

"Get down on one knee and ask with the ring," Souta stated simply like it was no big deal.

The hanyou's face fell, "That's it?"

"That's it." Souta got up from his post and exited the room with a final comment, "And Mama should bring in food soon...I saw her making something..."

As soon as Souta closed the door and walked down the stairs, Mrs. Higurashi asked with a tray of food in her hands, "What'd he say?"

"It looks like it. Inuyasha wants to marry her. Can I have a cookie now?"

His mother smiled and nodded. Ascending the stairs, Mrs. Higurashi could barely conceal her happiness.

~With Kagome~

"So you're spending the holiday with your cousins?" Eri asked while swinging her five shopping bags back and forth as she walked.

Kagome, who was hefting six herself, answered, "Yeah." _My cousins...Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, Kaede..._

A small detail caught Ayumi's attention, and she wondered aloud, "But what about your boyfriend?"

"What, Inuyasha?" she asked. _I can't believe I said that so naturally..._

"Yeah, what about Inuyasha? Is he coming with?" Yuka had an implied tone shining through.

Kagome was flabbergasted, and her cheeks turned red as she replied, "Yes, but not like _that_! Yuka, I can't believe you!"

"Alright, alright...But what are you going to get him?"

"I don't know yet..." Kagome sighed and sat down on a bench as she huddled into her sweater while the trio followed in suit. "He doesn't like much...He doesn't need much...He doesn't want much...And all I can think of is ramen, but that's lame..."

Ayumi patted her friend's shoulder, and explained, "It'll hit you Kagome..."

"Thanks, Ayumi...Hey can we go over to your house to wrap some of this stuff? I don't want Mama, Souta, and Ji-chan finding out what I got them..."

"Yeah, lets!"

~An hour later back at the house~

"Mama, I'm home!" Kagome called while she shut the door with her foot. "Mama?" Walking in further, she put down her bags, and began to look for everyone.

Souta came in and greeted, "Hi, Kagome."

"Hi Souta, where is everyone?"

"Ummm...Outside, but I wouldn't go out there if I were you."

"Why?" Kagome asked after she had the back door opened. "Oh." Ji-chan was chasing Inuyasha around and her mother was trying to stop him. "Hi, everyone!"

Everyone stopped dead in their tracks and straightened themselves out. Ji-chan turned to his daughter and inquired, "What's for dinner?"

"You'll see..." she replied and smiled.

Inuyasha walked up to Kagome as he was brushing off useless purification salts, and Kagome wondered, "What was that all about?"

"You don't wanna know..." Inuyasha groaned while trying to remove all of it from his hair.

Forgetting the majority of the incident, Kagome went on to the next topic of interest, "Wait, you're not healed yet, are you? You went running around and you're not even healed, didn't you?" Her eyebrows furrowed together in inquiry and anger that was ready to be unleashed.

"I'm fine...Really..." Inuyasha trailed off as he started for Kagome's room.

Her voice's pitch raised a knotch and she began to scold him, "I bet you're not. You're just saying that!"

Opening the door to Kagome's room, he inhaled the sweet scent. The peace it brought him distracted him from the fact that Kagome was ready to pounce. Pinning him in one swift motion, she undid the front of his haori and took off his bandages. There was no visible woulnd. "Oh..."

"I told you I was fine!" Inuyasha thanked Kami-sama that he had already put the ring back into one of his haori's many pockets.

"Yeah..."

The door swung open, and Souta's eyes widened yet again. There was his sister with Inuyasha straddled between her knees, and his chest exposed with his haori and undershirt not completely off. "Uhhh....Dinner's done..."

Kagome's voice cracked as she tried to explain the situation to her brother, "Umm, Souta..." She couldn't find anything else to say. It's not like they were doing anything, but how do you explain that?

Finding it an appropiate time to interject into the conversation, Inuyasha spoke up, "Errr...Kagome...I suggest you get off me..."

As suggested, Kagome got up and straightened her clothes. The hanyou, too, slowly rose and redid his top and tucked it into his pants.

"Uhh..." Souta was still shocked.

Being the reassuring person Kagome is, she figured out a way to explain the situation, "I wanted to make sure Inuyasha's injury healed, but he wouldn't let me. No more, no less."

Souta still had a stunned look in his eyes, but his body relaxed. "Alright...Well...Dinner's done."

The three descended the stairs in silence, and headed to the table. They sat down and began to eat the meal Mrs. Higurashi prepared.

"So, Inuyasha," Ji-chan began, "you intend to marry my granddaughter?"

All but Kagome stared at Ji-chan; she was looking at Inuyasha to wait for his reaction. She couldn't see it when he ducked his head down in embarrassment.

"Well, if you do...You better treat her well...If not..." he threatened.

Mrs. Higurashi leaned over and whispered in his ear, "I'm glad you accept him at least."

The "couple" finished together, and Kagome rose, "Mama, Ji-chan, Souta, we should be going back now. Okay?"

"Alright dear, just stay safe," Mama perked up.

After saying their goodbyes and the grabbing of the ever-expanding, yellow bag, the two dived into the shimmering blue light. Back to the Feudal Era.

End of Chapter 6

***A/n : I know that was fast (lol, I need to get up soon and I'm really tired. So it wasn't great...) Happy Thanksgiving guys! And for those of you not in the states, Happy Friday Eve! Please review! After the Christmas scenes, expect to see a return to the original plot line! This one's gonna be a doozy to write, but I hope I can write it as well as I'm picturing it! Thanks for all the support, and please review!

~Mitz-chan


	7. Christmastime

***A/n : My goodness! It's been quite some time since I've updated! (What has it been, a week? Two? Three?) I'm really sorry guys! My teachers are so giving around the holidays...I've got a project in all classes (3 in language!) and to top it off...midterms. I'm not guaranteeing an update until my finals and projects are over and done with (aka the 18th)! Although, if I go into insane, crazy mode where I can't possibly do any more work, this will be updated. I hope this chapter was worth the wait! Umm, in other news, my cast is off and I'm finally able to play in the orchestra again. First thing my teacher hits me withis Bach's Concerto in D minor 1st string. We'll be playing it with six violins instead of the traditional two (I think) at the end of the school year. When I saw the music, the first thing out of my mouth was a silent "holy fuck" as I was in math when I got it. I could sightread the beginning, but some of it...Whew...No wonder why we got the music when we did. But sorry again!

*Disclaimer : I am the owner of all the papers on Lily's kitchen table! Not Inuyasha!

__

Last time...

After saying their goodbyes and the grabbing of the ever-expanding, yellow bag, the two dived into the shimmering blue light. Back to the Feudal Era.

__

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 7 : Christmastime

Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, and Kaede were all in Kaede's quaint hut while waiting for Kagome to speak. "Okay, guys, this year I was thinking we celebrate a holiday from my time. It's called Christmas."

Echos of "Christmas?" filled the room before Kagome was able to speak again, "It's a Western holiday, so I don't quite understand it's purpose, but it's where friends and family go and exchange presents..." she trailed off as she witnessed the sheer delight on her friend's faces.

Taking that as a dismissal, everyone, with the exception of Kagome and Inuyasha, left the hut. Kagome just stared at the hanyou. "Aren't you going to get anything for anyone?" _Does he even care? _

He answered as he walked out, "I've got you covered, and I've got a good idea for the others..."

_Wait, what? Since when did he get me something? I just told them about it...Anyways...What am I going to get him?_ Scrambling out of the hut, she went to find him a gift.

~With Shippo~

"Dah Dee Dah..." the young kitsune hummed as he colored. _They're going to love these..._

~With Miroku~

"Ah, this one please," Miroku pointed.

"Lovely selection, is this for someone special?" the rosy-cheeked woman behind the counter asked as she carefully wrapped it.

Miroku rubbed at the back of his neck as he answered, "Yeah..." Putting a handful of coins on the counter, she handed him the package. Bidding the woman farewell, he walked out with a spring in his step.

_Hmm...Shippo, that's easy...Kirara, easier...Kagome, okay, I've got an idea...Kaede, got it...Inuyasha, that one's hard. What could I possibly get him? It's stupid, but I've got an idea..._

~With Sango~

_Shippo, Inuyasha...Okay those two are done...Kirara, I'll have to get that one when I'm not with her...Kagome, that works...Miroku, what do I get him? I got an idea, but it isn't really a possession in which he can keep...Kaede, I got it..._

~With Kaede~

Picking an herb, Kaede thought, _Getting them all individual gifts would be troublesome...What if I combined it all, and Kagome could keep it with her? That just might work..._

~With Inuyasha~

_The runt better like this...Aside from Kagome's gift, this is the one I spent some thought on...The pervert's getting something crappy, but I can't wait to give it to him. It's bugging me, and they're all wrapped up..Kirara, I think she'll be happy...Sango, I don't know...I've never really understood her...The old hag, well, maybe? Hey, Kagome's over there...I wonder what she's doing...? _

Without realizing it, he found himself watching her from behind a tree. He jumped when she said his name, "Inuyasha, what am I going to get you? You're the one person I haven't gotten anything for..." _Is that her problem?_

"I don't want to give you food...It's so lame. I already gave you that little gold locket, and you don't really carry much with you. You don't need much, you don't want much. You just manage on whatcha got... Where would he even put something if I were to get it for him?" the miko muttered as she paced around in a circle; completely oblivious to the hanyou spying on her. _That's probably because I don't want anything from you...All I want is for you to stay by my side. To see your smile, your laugh...everything I guess. The way you never give up, your personality, how your eyes twinkle, your concern, hell, the second before you sit me is amusing. The way your flare up in anger...Heh..._

***A/n : We don't know what he could be thinking, but at this point, I don't doubt that it's somewhere along these lines...

Kagome turned around and her eyes caught the familiar red robe. "Inuyasha...?"

Realizing he'd been caught, Inuyasha dropped the packages and walked out towards Kagome as she spoke, "How much of that did you hear?"

"Umm, enough?"

Kagome bit her lip. "So...You know I didn't get you anything?" she whimpered. After he nodded, she rested her forehead on his chest and apologized, "I'm sorry...I have no clue what to give you..."

He wrapped his arms around her and answered, "It's alright..."

Looking up at him, she retorted, "No it's not! There has to be something!"

He smiled, "Well, there's something you _could _do..."

"What?"

Inuyasha could barely keep a straight face as he spoke, "Kagome, could you pull out that locket you gave me?"

She shot him a confused look before finding the thin gold chain around his neck and slowly extracting it from underneath his clothing. When the pendants came to light, Kagome gasped. Smirking, he said, "Well, go ahead and take it off...."

She removed the necklace from around his neck, took off the ring, and rehooked it. Inuyasha grabbed the ring and slipped it onto her left ring finger as he proposed, "Kagome Higurashi, after everything settles down, will you marry me?"

Her eyes widened and tears brimmed in her eyes but refused to spill over. She buried her head into his haori, wrapped her arms around him, and whispered, "Yes." _I didn't think this day would ever come...not even in 500 years..._

Catching it, Inuyasha hugged back and whispered in her ear, "I'd say that's enough..."

"I wouldn't..." Kagome broke the hold, and brashly kissed him on the lips. _Now that's better...I guess Ji-chan wasn't joking...Think it's a good thing I didn't take him seriously..._

~With Sango~

_Ah, everyone's done...There's Miroku!_

"Hey, Miroku!" Sango called as she set down her wrapped packages.

"Hi, Sango!" Miroku greeted as he walked up with his own bundle.

"Miroku, you wouldn't mind if I gave you your present a little early would you?" Sango asked as she took his packages and set them down next to her own.

"I guess not..." he was interrupted by Sango's lips. Miroku wasn't sure how to respond, so he stood there, frozen.

Separating, Sango picked up her own load, and walked into Kaede's hut. "I couldn't think of anything better to get you..."

His mind finally assessed the situation, and his face flushed. _I couldn't think of anything better you could have given me Sango...Well, I could...But this is a good start..._Grabbing everyone's gifts, he followed Sango into the hut.

~10 minutes later~

Shippo was bouncing off of the walls, "When are Kagome and Inuyasha going to get back?"

Kaede stirred the soup while she answered, "I don't know...Ye need to be patient..."

_But why? They should get back soon so we can give each other presents! I don't wanna wait till tomorrow! I drew these pictures for everyone...Wait, here they come!_

Inuyasha and Kagome were walking side by side, and Inuyasha had his right hand on the small of Kagome's back like he was leading her and the other held his parcels. The ring was the major debate of things for the last ten minutes, but in the end they decided that Kagome should proudly wear it. Granted, Naraku probably would find out this way, but chances are he probably already knew. This way the others would know, and they figured they could no longer deny it. Even if Naraku knew, or found out, they were ready and willing to face whatever shit Naraku could possibly throw at them.

Shippo ran up to greet them, "Kagome! Inuyasha!" Shippo jumped and landed on Kagome's shoulder before he begged, "Can we open presents tonight, Kagome, please, please, please???"

Reaching the hut, Kagome asked the others, "I don't know, guys, what do you want to do? Tonight or tomorrow morning?"

Sango answered, "I guess if we want any sleep tonight or tomorrow...We should open them tonight..."

Everyone laughed and agreed that they should exchange gifts after dinner, which was practically inhaled.

"Alright, who goes first?" Kagome asked while she pulled her bag close to her.

"You," the group simutaneously replied; she brought the tradition, she should start it off.

"Okay..." Kagome dug around in her bag until she found the first package. "Ah, here Sango."

Sango opened it to find a pink bikini. "Umm...Kagome...What is it?"

"It's called a bikini, and some women wear them when them swim. I figured it might kill some of Miroku's hopes for peeping in the hot springs..."

Laughing, she finally got it, "Thanks, Kagome, it's perfect!"

Rustling around, Kagome pulled out the rest of the gifts and handed the next one to Shippo.

Ripping the paper apart, Shippo found a leather-bound art set and his eyes lit up. At this, Kagome interjected, "There are crayons, these things called pastels that are like spreadable crayons, markers have ink, pencils which you can erase withthat pink block thing and sharpen withthat little thingy with a silver blade, then there's a piece of charcoal and a rubber eraser, and I'm sure you can figure them all out."

"Wow, thanks!" Shippo piped as he continued to look at it. There were so many colors, and they all would lead to different techniques.

Next one was for Miroku.

"Err...What are these?" Miroku asked.

"They're ballpoint pens, they should make sutra writing easier, and I figured these could be carried in your robes and used instead of having to borrow an ink set at a random village."

"Wow...I can actually write them anytime...it's so convenient...thanks." Miroku opened the plastic they were concealed in and mindlessly clicked one of the pens. Sango hefted a small pebble, threw it at Miroku's head to catch his attention, and mouthed, "Stop it."

Kagome threw a small bag to Kirara, who promptly put a paw on it, tore at the rest with her teeth, and exposed a little purple mouse. Sinking her teeth into it, the fire cat rolled onto her back and started playing withit with her feet.

***A/n : You know that weird thing cats do, right? I'm at cousin Kat-chan's, and I'm staring at her four cats...Two are sleeping, one is combating the glow of the Christmas lights on the wall, and the last one is playing with a little purple mouse lol.

Handing the last, large package to Kaede, Kagome grinned widely. The old miko immediately recognized what it was even though it was modern. "An organization system...There's room for all of my dried herbs and everything...I don't know what to say, Kagome...Thank ye..."

"I'm glad you like it...Umm, Shippo why don't you go next?"

Shippo took notice to the fact that she didn't get anything for Inuyasha and said as such, "Kagome, you didn't get Inuyasha anything..."

Inuyasha spoke up, "I'd say Kagome's given me enough."

Miroku laughed, and Inuyasha's eyes flared up, "Not like that you fucking pervert, and you've got something right here." Inuyasha pointed to the side of his own mouth. The monk shut up as he realized it was Sango's lip balm.

"Well, if not like _that, _then what did Kagome get you?" Sango asked.

Being the poor, innocent kitsune he was, he wondered, "What is _that_?"

Blushing, Kagome lifted up her left hand and simply stated, "I said 'yes'."

Jaws instantly hit the ground, and Miroku stuttered, "Inuyasha...You proposed...To Kagome...And she said yes?"

The hanyou nodded and smirked.

Sango's voice trembled, "Where'd...Where'd you get the ring?" Grasping Kagome's hand, she examined it, "It's gorgeous..."

"It was my mother's."

Miroku asked the final question, "When did you get it?"

"That night of the new moon..."

Shippo absorbed the information, and took it a completely different way, "So you two are getting married?"

They both nodded.

"Yay!" Shippo cheered and hopped around.

"Could we stop gaping, and let Shippo hand out his presents to everyone?" Kagomeasked while shoving her hands back into her jacket and huffed out some frozen breath. Inuyasha scooted closer to her, wrapped his arms around her, and lifted her into his lap. For the first time, he could do this, and no one would get sat for it.

"Okay!" Shippo was prepared, and pulled out five drawings and a small fish, which was promptly given to Kirara. Handing a drawing to each of them, they all smiled.

Kaede's picture contained the six of them: Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara. Inuyasha's was a picture of Kagome and Shippo, and Kagome's of Inuyasha and Shippo. Sango received a drawing of Kirara and Miroku, and Miroku's was composed of Sango and Kirara.

"Wow, Shippo, these are amazing..."

"With crayons, too..."

"Never knew the runt had it in 'im..."

They weren't lying, either. For being composed of one of the worst coloring tools known to man, they were amazing. The details and shadowing was all there. By coloring lightly, he managed to make it much better than it would have been otherwise.

"Ummm, Inuyasha next!" Shippo declared as he sat in Kagome's lap, who was on Inuyasha.

Bending back, he allowed Kagome and Shippo to remain in place as he grabbed his packages and moved them to where he could reach them normally. Handing the first to Shippo, the kitsune rapidly ripped through the makeshift wrapping only to let his face fall. "Umm, what is it exactly?"

"It's a lucky rabbit demon foot. It'll keep you outta some trouble, and it'll save your ass once and only once," Inuyasha explained while Shippo continued to turn it over in his hands.

"So someone could keep a hundred of these and get in all the trouble they want and not get killed?" the kitsune asked.

"No, it only works once in a person's lifetime, but that's usually all it takes for them to live for many more years." _I remember when mine was used...I was a kid, and I was dead, but..._ "It doesn't always work, however, I've seen it fail many times, but I don't think it'll fail you."

"Oh..." Shippo murmured. Who knew Inuyasha actually thought about his gift, and it was actually something kind of cool? Hooking it to his belt, he thanked Inuyasha before the hanyou threw his next gift at Sango.

Catching it in a swift motion, she opened it. "Poison power..."

"I found it a while back when we last went to your village, but I kept forgetting I had it..." Inuyasha trailed off.

Sango laughed, "Well, I guess you remembered now. Thanks!"

"Miroku, heads up!" Inuyasha yelled as he threw a tightly wrapped package at him.

The monk didn't even bother to catch it once he realized it would land in his lap. Carefully unwrapping it, Miroku asked, "Is there anything in here?" Finally getting to the present, the lecher realized why it was wrapped so many times. "Prayer beads..." _Do I even want to know how he got these?_

"I thought most monks carried a set for demon slaying/paralyzing, but yours holds back your wind tunnel...so I figured another wouldn't hurt."

"It doesn't hurt..." Miroku replied as he wrapped the other set around his left hand. "I see why you had them wrapped as many times as you did..." _Who would ever think a hanyou would give a monk prayer beads? Who ever thought that this particular hanyou would give anyone anything?_

"Here, Kirara!" Inuyasha tossed a package towards her. Opening it, she found a weird looking fish that she ate anyway. Whatever it was, it was good.

"Kaede, could you come grab this one? It'll fall short if I throw it," Inuyasha said as he extended his arm as far as possible. Kaede complied, and opened it in front of him.

"Wreathe weed...This is difficult to find..."

"I can only find it in mountainous areas anymore...It was everywhere when you were a kid if I remember," Inuyasha commented and everyone looked between the two. He still looked seventeen and Kaede was around sixty, yet the hanyou was far older...It was weird... "Okay, Sango."

Sango got up and handed everyone their presents (Kirara's present was immediately eaten). Shippo opened his first, and found a small, sheathed dagger. "Gotta have something other than teeth, claws, and tricks, right?" Shippo fervently agreed and stuffed it in his belt next to the lucky foot.

Inuyasha took one thin slice with his claw, and saw a sheathed sword. The demon slayer explained her choice, "You're pretty much a useless human...Sure you've got brute strength, but you can't bring a fist to a sword fight and expect to win."

The hanyou laughed, admired it, and stashed it next to Tetsusaiga.

Kagome opened hers to find a necklace with half of a seashell as a pendant. "I've got the other half...so they come together." The miko put it around her neck and smiled. _It's an early friendship necklace..._

Kaede unwrapped hers, and found about a dozen vials. For making potions and remedies.

"Umm, Miroku, you next."

Shippo whispered in Inuyasha's ear, "What about Miroku?"

"He already got his gift," the hanyou chuckled.

Miroku pulled a red collar with a little bell attached out and tied it around Kirara's neck. "It's enchanted to grow with her." Kirara walked around happily letting the bell ring as she went along.

"Aw, that's so cute!" Sango and Kagome squealed.

"Shippo, Kagome, Inuyasha..." Miroku handed them each a package.

Shippo opened it to find a large pad of paper, Kagome got a larger quiver that had straps to hold her bow as well, and Inuyasha got a band to tie his hair with. "Shippo, I figured Kagome would give you some more crayons, so paper seemed fitting. Kagome, now you don't have to carry your bow with your hand or shove it in your bag. And Inuyasha, your hair has to bother you in battle, it flies everywhere."

The group laughed at Miroku's practicality before he handed another present to Kaede which was a new pestle and mortar.*

*It's a bowl type thing with this blunt, thick stick type thing. I've seen ones made out of wood and stone. They are used to grind, smash, and mix ingredients. I'm sure there are much better descriptions for it, but that gives a general idea...I think lol.

Lastly, his one for Sango. Placing it on her lap, he anxiously waited for her to open it. After seeing the look on Miroku's face, she slowly opened it to torture him just a little. The wrappings revealed a lovely, pink kimono that cause Sango to gasp. "It's beautiful, Miroku! Thank you! But when would I wear it?"

Miroku leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Our wedding day perhaps?"

Sango blushed and nodded. Their wedding day...

"Kaede, last but not least."

The woman got up, went back into her hut, and came outwith a book. Handing it to Kagome, she began to explain, "This is a detailed description of the useful herbs around Japan. Where to find them, what part to use, what they look like, when they grow, what they do, how to prepare them. It's all in there, and I figured it it could help all of ye. So it's a group present, but I'm leaving it in the care of Kagome."

"Wow, Kaede, this is really detailed. I'll be sure to use it..." Kagome thanked and then yawned, "I don't know about you guys, but I think we should go to bed..."

"Yeah..." the tired group agreed, picked up their gifts, and walked back into the hut to sleep.

~The Next Morning~

Kagome woke to to find herself curled up into Inuyasha's warmth and Shippo on her lap. She then remembered the temperature of last night, and how she took Shippo and snuggled up next to the dozing hanyou. Even Sango and Miroku were leaning against each other. Getting up, she gently set Shippo in Inuyasha's lap, who quickly buried himself into his chest. The hanyou was warm, incredibly warm, no wonder he could handle the snow barefooted...

Walking out to the hut's threshold, she peered out and saw that the ground was white. _So it's a white Christmas after all...Might as well enjoy it before we restart our hunt for Naraku...I wonder what the book says will happen...?_

End of Chapter 7

***A/n : That wasn't my best writing, by far, but oh well, and if two words are together, blame the Document Manager (I type my chaps on it)...I don't know why it does that, it combines words after I save it...Even if they were fine to start with. Wow...That dragged on, but it had to be done...Lol, hope it was more entertaining to read than to write. Merry Christmas! If you don't celebrate Christmas, go ahead and wish me a whatever you celebrate, or nothing at all. It's funny though, it bothers me when people say "Happy Holidays"...It's just so impersonal, and here in America, the Constitution says freedom of religion...not freedom from religion. It's all too PC for me...When I was a kid, I lived in a smaller town, and you could walk up to a Jewish family and say "Merry Christmas", and they'd smile and wish you a "Happy Hanukkah". One of my best friends is an atheist, and whenever I say "Merry Christmas", she'll say "Happy [insert day of week here]". Lol! Anyways, please review!

~Mitz-chan


	8. Reality, Fantasy, or Fate? Part 1

***A/n : Hi guys! Thanks for the reviews, I really didn't think I'd be anywhere near 53 reviews by 7 chaps! These last few weeks have been insane and I'm glad to be on break! There's only a little bit of homework, too! I've been sleeping, cleaning, and baking! My parents came a little bit early (that's why I haven't updated until now....sorry!) and left this morning, but it was a blast. We goofed off, ate a lot of food, and exchanged presents. They're visiting once more on my birthday, and should be home for a while come March. So it's not too long. I hope all of your holidays were great! I'm sorry my updates aren't as frequent as I'd like them to be! I try, I really do! I'm thinking things will be a bit easier soon as we've gotten the major stuff out of the way in my classes (it's basically a cram school, and we get almost all of our curriculum done in the first semester--and sometimes a quarter more...Last part of the year is sometimes independent studies...) and once I've gotten the results from my top pick high school. My second pick would take me no questions asked, but my first...I wanna get in! I didn't do as well on the test (except math which might be my savior!), so I've got to prove myself! Lol, it's okay, I know I'm a geek. =) I'm sure you guys don't wanna listen to me babbling anymore, do you? (Does anyone like my writing these things?) These next few chapters...Eheh, just stay with me everyone! I'll make sense...eventually...Although, if anyone has any predictions, I'd love to hear them! I'd like to know if I'm predictable or not. Lol.

*Disclaimer : I have said this once, and I shall say this again; I do NOT own Inuyasha!

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 8 : Fantasy, Reality, or Fate? Part 1

_Dark thunder clouds rumbled angrily over the battlefield while icy rain pelted the ground and its inhabitants below. Human or otherwise. Our foe stood before us in his full glory, ready for combat. He was whole now, every part of him was in his body...heart included. This was the final battle, and our fate depended on it. Nothing would succeed to hamper with our endeavor this time. This was it. _

_The hanyou positioned himself in full battle stance; sword drawn in front of him in a loose, challenging manner, feet firmly on the ground, eyes taunting and playful like a child, and a small gash marred his eyebrow leaving blood slowly trickling down his face. His haori, which he wore during such situations, was draped over the miko to protect her from the sharp, falling ice. She stood next to him with her bow fully drawn and ready to fire while her face held a serious look. We were, at first, taken aback by it, but we understood._

_Thrusting his staff outwards, the monk stood confident with his love by his side. She stood next to him with her boomerang bone in front of her while her fire-cat was nearby with fanged bared._

_Before the battle could commence, the moment seemed to freeze with anticipation and fear of its own. Each individual hailstone ceased its attempt to make it downwards, but its journey resumed in a brief moment. Signaling the start, the miko's arrow whizzed towards Naraku, who narrowly dodged. _

_Firing back with a torrent of tentacles, we all were caught in them. Acid slowly secreted through the pores of the strong extremities and began to singe our clothing. Reacting in speed unfitting of a human, the hanyou slashed through the tentacles with ease and grace, and thus set us free with the exception of some burnt clothing. The remaining acid found itself neutralized by the hail that was still falling. _

_Inuyasha held his sword out like before, and Naraku just laughed, "Kukukuku...That is just the beginning..."_

_Smirking back, the half demon retorted, "Wasn't expecting less." Rushing forward, Inuyasha unleashed the Wind Scar. After deciding that Naraku didn't want to kill Inuyashawith his own crudely expelled power, he let the Wind Scar disintegrate before him. _

_We all stood wide with shock, and Naraku chose to fill us in on his methods, "I will not kill you with your own power...No...I want to kill you with mine! As much as it pleasures me to see your defeat by your own hand, it would give me more to see you perish by mine!" This was unlike him; Naraku was a coward. If he were confident enough to fight us, he knew he could easily slay us..._

_Our hanyou then chose to directly charge and stab, and to our surprise, our opponent didn't even flinch and allowed the blade to go cleanly through his stomach. As he tore out the sword, miasma escaped the wound, and the half demon seemed to inhale one large breath of it before he found himself choking on it. The miko drew an arrow from her quiver, drew back her bow string, and shot clear through the poisonous gases; rendering them unable to serve its master's wishes._

_Leaping backwards, the hanyou gasped out one last cough before he bounded to his love; the evil hanyou(if that were still indeed his percentile) would probably attack her next._

_The hail evolved into rain and cascaded down in enormous droplets; injuring the ground, and us, with it's heavy patter. It mercilessly beat us down, and made our vision slightly fogged over. The dark sky suddenly flashed with light and loud thunder boomed over us. A nearby tree was struck by a bolt, but didn't catch fire. All attempts to clear our vision proved to be in vain, and we hoped that Inuyasha and Kirara were able to handle this until we could regain our composure._

_We could feel the power being exchanged in rampant bursts and could hear Inuyasha grunt as he was assumingly blown back. Of course, we also heard the classic war cry type noise he made after he got back up and charged. The rain softened, and our eyes quickly acquired their focus. _

_Inuyasha's blood was diluted by the rain, so we couldn't quite tell how injured he really was. His undershirt was no longer white, or even off-white for that matter, but red. To help, the demon slayer slung her boomerang bone at some of Naraku's appendages and the monk promptly sucked them up in his Wind Tunnel. Collapsing to the ground, beads of sweat began to break on the monk's forehead, and the demon slayer fell to help._

_Laughing, the evil hanyou riled up an energy ball from the surroundings and threw it at the remaining couple while he shot several tentacles in their direction. Almost a second too late, Inuyasha yelled, "Now!" just before he unleashed the Backlash Wave, and the miko shot one of her arrows aimed at Naraku's heart. The smaller (yet still the size of child's ball) and faster tentacle reached them a few seconds before they could counterattack. Pausing for a moment in the hanyou's chest, the tentacle exited his back, and barely entered the miko's chest as well. Just then, their counterattack reached it's peak force and destroyed Naraku's body; leaving nothing but a nearly completed jewel behind._

_Without knowing it had met the miko as well, our hanyou ripped the dead appendage out quickly. When he turned to face his love, she fell forward into his arms, unconscious. His eyes widened as he lifted her up and ran towards us yelling, "Get the jewel and meet us back at Kaede's!"_

_His figure disappeared in the distance with a trail of blood right behind him. Boarding the monk onto the fire-cat, the demon slayer quickly snatched up the polluted gem in a cloth, pocketed it, got on behind the monk, and told the fire-cat to return to Kaede's quickly. Lives depended upon it..._

_____

_Lead-laden steps shook the ground, and I shrunk back in fear. Was Naraku here? Was everyone else dead? Had he killed them? Inuyasha tromped in with my foster mother in his arms. Only then did I realize that his haori was wrapped around her, and the substance dying his undershirt was blood. Setting her down in a nearby cot, I saw a small bloodstain grow larger by the second on her blouse. The hanyou wavered in place, held the wall for support, and fell to the floor, unconscious in an expanding pool of his own blood. Before I ran for Kaede, I heard him whisper, "Save 'Gome..."_

_When we returned, Inuyasha had braced himself against the wall with a grimace and my mother hadn't moved an inch. Kaede dropped all she carried and asked, "What happened to the two of ye? Where are the others?"_

_"Kaede...We kill'd that bas'ard Nara'u...But 'e managed to poi--," he convulsed forward before finishing, "son us...The others...are comin'..." His hand that was pressed up against his stomach was moved and thin blood dripped from it. Kaede's eyes widened in concern, but Inuyasha nodded her off and pointed to Kagome with a limp hand._

_The old miko threw some cloth at me and tilted her head at the hanyou while she went to tend to Kagome's injury. Rushing over, I slid on the metallic-smelling substance and into him. Upon closer inspection, a small, dried slash practically cut his eyebrow in two and various other small scratches were sporadically placed on his face, hands, and feet. As I began to remove his undershirt, Inuyasha thrashed and sent me flying into the wall._

_Hitting it, I grunted and turned back around to see him writhing in anguish. Kaede spun and hurried to his side. Whimpering, he wondered, "Wha' 'bout 'Gome?"_

_"She'll be fine," Kaede answered. To confirm this, I walked over to her to see her shirt partially lifted, stomach bandaged, and sleeping soundly. The poison didn't seem to affect her much. Was it because she was a miko? Or was the poison not specifically designed for humans? Or had Kaede given her some antidote? "But ye...Inuyasha," Kaede continued with a sigh, "are knocking on death's door, and he's more'n happy to answer..."_

_Inuyasha's body heaved itself forward violently into Kaede. "Oompf..." they both moaned. Lashing backwards, his head smashed into the wall with a sickening crack. Before he succumbed to the peaceful unconsciousness, Kaede asked, "Do ye only have a bit of control of yer body?" He nodded 'yes' and Kaede drove into action. "Grab that futon!" she commanded as she jolted to a cabinet and pulled out a few lengths of rope with small beads woven into them while I grabbed the futon laying in the corner._

_Straightening out the rope next to the unconscious (but still twitching) hanyou, she quickly grabbed the rubbery futon from me and placed it on top of them. Kaede grabbed his shoulders and ushered me with a head nod to grab his feet. As I looked straight at her, I saw a purple bruise forming on her cheek where Inuyasha had initially rammed into her. Disregarding my distraction, I helped Kaede shift (not lift...) Inuyasha onto the futon. His bleeding and twitching still didn't stop, and I began to wonder if Inuyasha hadn't just knocked on death's door...What if he had let himself in?! Now wasn't a time to freak out...Calm down...He knocked on death's door and ran like hell....Yeah, that's it, ran like hell..._

_Peeling away his torn undershirt with unbelievable speed, the priestess tossed it away to the side and began tying the ropes just below his shoulders, at his waist which caught his arms in as well, and around his ankles. "Will that even work?" I asked...Inuyasha could easily break rope even when weak with yet another gaping hole through his chest._

_"Yeah...the beads are the same as the subjugation necklace he wears. It'll keep 'im down just fine," she replied as she grabbed some new cloth and a vial of erm...anti-poison?_

_The old miko knelt down next to him and began to press the cloth on his wound. Blood easily made it's way to the visible portion of cloth, so Kaede pressed harder only to find that it wasn't clotting. When she turned to face me, her eyes were as cold (if not colder) than stone, "Shippo, can your foxfire heat things up?"_

_"Uhh...no, it gives the allusion that it's hot, but it can't heat anything up...Why?" _

_She whispered a swear I had only ever heard Inuyasha use and rummaged around through her cabinets of ointments and potions. Pulling one out, her mouth switched back and forth in indecision before she took it back to where Inuyasha was restrained. _

_A groan filled the room, and I looked back at the hanyou as his eyes lazily opened to reveal a fogged-over glaze. Kaede bent down beside him and explained, "This was more than necessary, and I'm warning you now, this is going to be really hot and then really cold. Understand?"_

_He nodded 'yes', but his head looked heavy when it swayed with disorientation. Stealing some nearby clothes, I balled them up and put them under his head as a for of a pillow. "Ummm, Kaede, shouldn't we wrap his head with....erm...anything?"_

_As she removed the lid and drew some sort of ointment on two of her fingers, she simply said, "Bottom drawer far right shelf, take the ointment in there, too. Make sure you wash the wound first." I grabbed the needed supplies and ran back over and slightly turned his head up, there was one problem, no blood, just a big bruise. "Umm, Kaede, there's no blood, it's just a big bruise."_

_"Well, there's blood, but it's inside. Just wrap it then, there's nothing else we can do." I complied and wrapped his head when my attention was caught by his hands; his palms were turning white upon the pressure of his nails. I scooted down and wrapped my small hands around his enormous thumb, and his fingers unlocked by each joint while his eyes shot me a thankful(?) look. He had never done that before..._

_At each appliance of the hot substance and each chill it brought caused him to squirm, but I kept on holding--more like clinging--his thumb. It made me feel if I were to let go, he'd die. Tears brimmed in my eyes, but refused to spill over when I remembered how he told me men don't cry. Then I remembered how he had cried, if only a few tears, over the death of Kikyou and the near death of the miko, the demon slayer, and the monk. This was an acceptable time, too, right? A single tear slid down my face as his grew paler. My lip quavered as more tears sped down my face and mixed with the blood on the ground. _

_Smiling a genuine smile at me, his eyes darted to something behind me, and before I had a chance to look back, I felt a thin hand on my shoulder. Kaede kept working as if she took no notice. The miko was up already? She moved to my side and I saw her tears silently sliding down. Bending down, she lightly kissed him on the lips. When she sat back up, he grinned madly before whispering, " 'Member, 'Gome, I'll always love you..."_

_She gave him a weak smile and grabbed the other part of his hand while she spoke with choked words, "Inu...Inuyasha, there's no...no way I can ev...er for...get you. I love you, too." A single finger ran over the ring he had given her as she said this._

_I looked over at Kaede, and she, too was crying silent tears like the younger miko once was. She undid his bindings as he wasn't convulsing from the poison anymore. Did this mean Inuyasha was going to die? I clung to my foster mother and cried into Inuyasha's haori which made it all the sadder. No more devilish smirks, immaturity, no more easy pranks, no more blows to the head, no gloating after an impressive battle, no more "keh", no more "meh", no more "feh", no more tips on hunting, no more bizarre fatherly figure, no more Inuyasha...And probably...no more 'Gome..._

_The monk, demon slayer, fire-cat, and the demon slayer's brother (what happened there...I don't know...) walked into the hut. Their eyes immediately found their way to Inuyasha (who's head was now on the miko's lap) and the monk gave him a repressed grin as he held up the blackened, completed jewel (I still don't know what happened!) in a cloth between his middle and ring finger of his bare right hand. Inuyasha beamed, eyes lit up, and squeezed our hands before his eyes glazed over and closed for the final time._

_Tears slid down our faces. Inuyasha was dead, killed by the enemy that he had slain, but he had died in the presence of the ones he had loved. _

End of Chapter 8

***A/n : Okay, I'm not going to comment on what this chapter was, or even the quality (I teared up a little at parts myself, though)...I'd give it all away. I'd love to hear what you thought though! So please review, and all those who review will actually get a chappy summary this time (and maybe my take on this chapter...)! I know I didn't give much of one out last time as I wasn't sure how to approach this...I've got another week of break so expect more soon! I will update soon (trust me, people, this is far from the end!), but Lily's also releasing SSFH's sequel and we still have this one computer...

~Mitz-chan


	9. Reality, Fantasy, or Fate? Part 2

***A/n : I'm really sorry guys! My updates shouldn't be this late again unless I have yet another month like the one I did...Everything is quiet now, so I think I've got some explaining to do... One of Lily's dogs was diagnosed with a brain tumor (her odd behavior started the day after X-mas), and we tried to watch her at all times. The poor little dog died on January 26th in Lily's arms...Her other dog managed to blow a blood vessel and had to get surgery, and now he's currently in a cone (that he's managed to remove by himself). She recently brought another dog (she's an interesting one...) who is nearly two, but acts like a puppy. Both of us got incredibly sick thanks to something that went around my school, and both of us were out for a week and still sick for three more. I've finished the application process for my top pick high school (which was incredibly long...), and I have officially been accepted. I've seen several people drop out of this academy, so...we'll see how I do. Thanks for still continuing to read this, and please review.

*Disclaimer : I don't own Inuyasha...I'm only fourteen.

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 9 : Fantasy, Reality, or Fate? Part 2

_I don't know how long I've been "fighting" these four...I don't understand how I once thought they were troublesome; in fact, they haven't landed a single major blow on me. Oh, that's right, I've acquired all but one jewel shard, and that I shall have after this battle. Kukukuku, I've nearly killed the hanyou...Come at me you foolish bastard...I'll even let you in...Yes, that's right...Let's let you pretend you got through those tentacles..._

_Perfect, try to stab at my heart, and lets see what happens to you. With my miasma, you should be passing out right about...now...And when you wake up, you'll find your companions dead. Then what will you do? I should start with that fucking, Kikyou-look-a-like miko..._

_Ah, I can hear the miko scream out for her love...what a wonderful way to start the morning..._

_* * * _

_Where am I? What the hell happened? That's right, I was about to kill Naraku and I felt a pulse, and nothing...Why do I smell like blood? Why do I smell...KAGOME! MIROKU! SANGO! They're dead...He...He...That bastard kkkilled them..._

_Tears ran down my face as I charged...He smirked...That bastard! He's going to pay even if it costs me my life..._

_The next few moments were all a blur as I hacked at him with Tetsusaiga, and if he hit me with his tentacles, I couldn't feel it...I couldn't feel it at all..._

_* * *_

_"Kaede!" I called her over with fresh tears in my eyes, "I just know something's happened!"_

_She sighed as she continued to grind an herb, "All we can do is pray to Kami-Sama that they'll be alright...It's all we can do..."_

_Despite what Kaede said, praying wasn't something I could sit around and do...Kami-sama hasn't seemed to have an affect on our fates, we make our own fates...If something was to be determined by fate, we would have no choice in this world, and I'm choosing to go and see what happened._

_"Kirara, let's go, follow Sango's scent, okay?"_

_* * *_

_That's a good puppy, just keep slashing at those tentacles. You've already been poisoned, I'm impressed that you even lasted this long...Though, you shan't be getting revenge for your companions...I can always kill you first, but I'd like to see this poison work. It already knocked you out, and with your speed, it should be rampant throughout your blood...All I have to do is sacrifice a few tentacles; that's something I'm more than willing to do._

_* * *_

_The fire-cat roared as we approached the battle sight while I kept my ears open for any sounds of fighting; there were none. I smelled blood...and a lot of it...majority of it Inuyasha's. No matter how long it's been, this is the one scent I will forever remember...__He's the protector; he would sooner die than see any of us hurt, and I cannot name anyone else who has had their blood spilled so carelessly in such quantities. Inuyasha is selfless, but I wish he wouldn't be like this sometimes...It's like...It's almost like he doesn't understand that people care for him. Did Kagome not say yes? Did she not cry those times she thought he had died? Have we never thought the thoughts of how...lost...we'd be without his presence? Nothing would be the same...He somehow kept this mismatched group together. Does he not know that? Does he not know that we could never fully move on? Does he not know that Kagome would probably never be able to love another? _

_My face felt flushed and sticky so I wiped it on my my sleeve. Sniffling back a choked sob, I braced myself for the worst I could possibly see..._

_* * *_

_Did it...Kill't that bas'tard, Nara'u... 'Ear that 'Gome? San'o? Miro'u? I kill't 'im...'ow we can all die toge'her..._Inuyasha thought as his breathing grew shallow while he laid strewn across the blood-drenched earth. Furrowing together in grief themselves, the clouds cried out for the fallen with hopes to drench the soil in its own tears rather than the remaining evidence of bloodshed.

_Pitta-Pat-Pitta-Pat! _It now came in syncopated, large droplets. Silent tears, unknown to the falling rain, slid down the hanyou's face while he thought his final thoughts. Time seemed to freeze as his thinking slowed though only a few seconds had passed..._Forget reality; it is not a sight you wish to see and embrace your fantasies, hopes, and dreams. Maybe then, and only then can you find your peace._

Before his last distant, dreary thought came to mind, he thought he heard the voices of his companions calling him to join the other side with them. Accepting their request, he felt himself floating away.

End of Chapter 9

***A/n : Didn't come out as I was expecting it (ahhh, it's short too!), but it works. I won't give any hints as to what I'm planning (except for the ones I placed in the text), but I hope some of you guys can figure it out. If you think you got a good idea, please review and tell me what...Want to know if I'm predictable...haha, I always say that. Anyways, excuse any and all combined words for the current and previous chapters. This is what I get for typing on the Document Manager, and this is the treatment it inflicts (it sometimes doesn't save either because it automatically logs me out)...Depending on how many of your guys are still reading this (and tell me so by reviewing), I'll update again over this long weekend. :) Lily should be getting started up again soon too. ^_^

~Mitz


	10. Thoughts of a Fallen Man

***A/n : Thanks for the old reviewers and new reviewers! These last few days haven't been too interesting...Enjoy! :P

*Disclaimer : I am the owner of...a growling stomach that won't shut the hell up in social studies class while I'm taking a quiz. And a fic that happened to originate in Kagome's social studies class. Huh. Anyways, I don't own Inuyasha.

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Chapter 10 : Thoughts of a Fallen Man

_Gentle breezes blew on the tall grass, swirling it along with its majestic dance while the sun shown its brightest through the cloudless sky. A day like no other: young girls were frolicking along in the wind while picking flowers, young boys ran around and played tag, mothers were out without a concern for their children, and fathers were happily at work harvesting the rice paddies. Peace settled over the village, and it had become nothing but second nature. No demons, no fighting, no bloodshed. Life was just life. _

_The leaves of the Goshinboku swayed as well, but its branches were left empty of the troubles, woes, and sorrows. In fact, one day not long ago, the bringer of such emotion ceased his pondering thoughts, his worries, his pain. It was silent now, left unaffected by its human counterpart; though, it noted its absence. One doesn't spend over fifty years with another only to forget about the time. Even if they do, there are still reminders that dwell behind: an arrow hole, a bit of dried blood, stabbing claw marks left from frustrating times. All of it. All of it was there to remind one of the scars of the past._

_Vines enveloped its outside, though no dare go into the Bone Eater's well. That pleasure was reserved for the remains of the damned and nothing else ever crossed its wake._

_An old miko sat in her hut thinking of the times not a year ago yet and of the chaos it wrought, the pain inflicted, and somehow the peace it brought. No, she shook her head, it wasn't the fault of time; it was that of the Sacred Jewel and the evil hanyou, Naraku. Now they were long gone and they haven't met her sight since...Sighing, she drew back her thoughts to the present matter at hand: brewing a cure for an elder's grandchild._

_A young fox, who had grown rapidly in body and mind, sat on the top of the hill with his fire-cat friend looking down at the water. They were just waiting to see something appear there: a proposal, a sit, anything to keep their minds at bay. Images of the past appeared before their eyes, and wishes of their becoming tangeble would never come true. Instead, in their place, they saw their own reflections in the still waters below. Winter had not yet come around, but yet they waited with great anticipation of the day the land would be crossed and they once again, would meet._

_Rolling some dough, a young mother smiled at her children while her husband swung through the door and kissed her cheek. _

_Looking down upon these happy, albeit solemn, scenes, his mind chose to see something new._

_* * * _

_His love came running towards him with sparkling eyes while his own traced her now-rounding frame. Meeting in an embrace, he twirled her playfully with a grin on his face and they began to dance to no music. They continued on like that for eternity it seemed, but he had never experienced such a serene moment in his life..._

_* * * _

_Chasing each other, four children and a fire-cat darted back and forth through the meadow while their parents sat back, talking of old times. Kagome leaned back into her husband and he loosely wrapped his arms around her; meanwhile, Sango sat on Miroku's lap as he carefully ran his fingers across her protruding stomach. _

_They weren't constantly searching for anything; the jewel was destoryed. Absolutely nothing prevented them from settling down and having a couple of kids. Though he missed the thrill of the battlefield (as he had lived his entire life fighting), he enjoyed the peace away from it. Occasionally, he'd have go slay a demon outside the village, but one swipe and it was usually dead. No big deal._

_It was all too good to be true._

_* * * _

_You're right, it is all too good to be true, _he mused to himself now that he was in the midst of sheer darkness.

There was no sense of body, no sense of depth. Whether he was alive or dead, he didn't know. Either way, he felt like he was floating, drifting away from his body. The pain was gone; that, or it it was so great that he had grown to ignore it.

_Heaven or Hell? Where will I go? Where will I be taken? Am I in Purgatory? That must be it, Heaven isn't for those as contaminated as I am, but Hell apparently won't even take me. I am nothing...That is why I am no where._

_I'm left here in the solitude, I won't even be able to see Kagome and the others again...alive or dead. I'll just rot in this existence until I, like my surroundings, am nothing! _

_"Ahhh!" _he screamed to himself, unsure of whether anyone was there to hear.

For a brief moment, he let himself slip away from this nothingness, and found another situation to view.

* * *

_"Inuyasha," he heard Kagome crooning his name. "Inuyasha," she repeated with a despairing tone. _

_His eyes fluttered opened only to see the woman he loved. Jolting upright, he rested his forehead on her shoulder to breathe her scent. No graveyard soil, just Kagome..._

_"I thought you were dead..." he sighed a breath of relief._

_"I didn't think you were going to wake up..." she croaked out seconds before her tears spilled over onto his shoulder and down his back. _

_"Kagome, please don't cry for me..." he whined. "What happened? How'd you survive? All that blood...What about Sango and Miroku?"_

_Unknown to the hanyou, her face contorted into a questioning expression. "What do you think happened?"_

Why would she ask this question? Does she not know what happened? _"We were fighting Naraku, right?" His voice exhibited his confusion._

_Ignoring the searing pain in his midsection, he turned to look at Kagome's left hand, and saw that there was no ring present. Had he not given it to her yet? Was all of it just a dream? A nightmare?_

_"Inuyasha, what's wrong? And you shouldn't even be moving...Come on, lay back down...Whatever you saw, it was all a dream...We're all here; Sango, Miroku, Shippo, Kirara, and Kaede are all in the other room. You're probably a bit addled by the snake poison. I'm glad we came when we did, or else you might have died..." Her voice shook on the last word, and her hand eased him down on the futon._

This isn't right...

End of Chapter 10

***A/n : You've read, so please review! I know it's short, but only one more chapter should be around this length...Then it'll get longer. I'm really not sure what to write right here. Ohh, I got it! Am I nuts, or do the majority of memorable romantic/unromantic moments take place while the two in the situation are at the bottom of some grassy hill while the others are at the top in earshot? I'd appreciate it if you guys could answer in your review!

~Mitz


	11. Thoughts of His Fallen Love

***A/n : Haha, you won't believe my teachers. On Monday: my science teacher says, "Big project due Thursday and midterm next Wednesday." Math, "Oh by the way, you're midterm is on Thursday and Friday. Don't forget to study!" Spanish, "Midterm Wednesday!" Social Studies, "Midterm AND Big Project Friday!" Language arts, "Two essays, 100 or so pages of our book and 8 essay questions on it, 2 poems, and two tests!" *Sweat drop* Haha, everything's done...I'm sorry. When I wasn't studying, I was running emergency cram sessions for my friends...Lily's computer isn't working well either (there's a delay as I'm typing this), and I'm amazed she hasn't electrocuted herself. She fell down some stairs though...she's okay though. It isn't the first time she's done that either. I'm still waiting for my report card (haha, I did well on all my finals, but with some reports...I'm just waiting for that dreaded B to find its way into my grades). I'm still tired, too, fucking insomnia...

*Disclaimer : I don't own Inuyasha. At all. Nuh uh.

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Last time...

This isn't right...

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Chapter 11 : Thoughts of His Fallen Love

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Inuyasha...What happened? Where are we? What are we doing here? Why is it when I move it feels like when I step in water in tennis shoes except with my entire body? Why aren't you answering me? I smell your scent; it has me enveloped. I can't get up; I keep slipping on something...It's slushy and metallic-smelling. Kami-sama, it's blood. Whose is it? It's yours, isn't it?! There...there's so...so much of it. This is only my haori I'm holding, am I right? Then where did you go? I can't see you; you're not here. I thought you said you weren't leaving me alone!

Running up to his foster mother with a nature fervent in manner, the kitsune wrapped his arms around her. Tears, that had long remained dormant, were finally spilled over where they mingled with the sea of blood. Overwhelming her, a torrent of emotion hit Kagome, and she clung onto Shippo as her only pillar of support.

Glancing up at him, Kagome's eyes held an expression that cried 'please don't confirm this' as she asked in a choked sob, "Is…is Inu…he dead?" Her voice shuttered as each word left her.

Shippo answered to the best of his ability, "There's no body." Only then, did he realize what he was saying and tears began to cascade down his face.

A smile was faintly visible on her lips as she responded, "He can't be dead…I'd feel it…He's still here. Somewhere. He's just got to be." Whether her words were of truth, Shippo knew not, but he knew that Kagome truly believed it; her eyes were burning with the undying passion that lead him to think as such. "Where's Sango and Miroku, and how'd you get here anyway? We didn't take you with us…"

"I sent them back with Kirara…and I knew something was wrong with this situation, so I had to come…something was wrong…Something is wrong…" Shippo trailed off.

Rising to her wobbling feet, she set Shippo down on the ground as she chose her next words, "Shippo, go back and take care of the others…I'm going to find him…Tell them what I'm doing." Her tone prevented him from doubting and questioning her intentions, but he didn't want to let her venture off by herself.

His opposing words meekly left his lips, "Kagome, you shouldn't just go alone…"

Into the forest, the young miko started through the forest without concern for herself, but silent tears slid down her face. "Shippo, I'm sorry, but I have to go…I can't sit here and do nothing. I _have _to go; it's an inkling that exists in my being, and I don't think it'd be possible to walk forward unless I find him. Alive or…" her voice shook upon the words leading up to it, "dead…I _must _know. I _must. _I love you all, and if I don't come back make sure the others know that. Shippo, you're like my son, but I can't let you come with me…" Her fingers twirled the light green stone that was around her left ring finger as she started to leave Shippo's now-cloudy line of vision.

Realizing something important, Shippo ran to catch up with her and yelled, "Kagome! You don't have the Sacred Jewel, do you?"

In a quick turn around, the kitsune was able to see Kagome's red, blotchy face and determined eyes. "What? No. Why?"

Relieved that this was indeed, actually important, he continued, "Sango and Miroku didn't have it, and if you don't have it…"

"Then it's gone missing…" they trailed off simultaneously.

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Inuyasha's missing, too. Could that mean that Inuyasha took it? And left? He wouldn't do that, would he? At the beginning of our adventure, that's all you wanted to do. I thought what with all of your demonic possession that you didn't want to attempt that anymore. I thought you didn't want to become a demon, was I naive to think that? You surely don't want to become a human; I know how you don't like feeling weak.

Was it all a lie? Did he just lie to continue this? To control my feelings? No! Don't think of such things! Especially since you know that they aren't true. He wouldn't have risked his life over and over to save me; he wouldn't have left me with his fire rat robe or this ring. I don't want to think such terrible things of him…No, he's injured, he's been kidnapped! Something!

There's no blood leaving the main battleground, either. That either means he was taken, or left, by air or that he never truly left. I don't think hed leave without a body…He's too durable…he'd have to, you know, combust?

And if he was taken, that means that whoever took him has the Sacred Jewel!

"Oh, and Naraku really is dead this time around! Miroku's wind tunnel is gone!"

"Shippo, thank you! I _really _have to go this time! Tell the others about the situation; I might need backup!" With that, Kagome fully disappeared from Shippo's line of vision, and with a final, sniffled sob, he started to walk back to Kaede's village.

Each bloody step, in blood that was not her own, left a footprint that only moved in one direction: forward. There would be no looking back upon this endeavor, and this particular path would never be taken again even once the destination is reached. No looking back, no regrets. This was the path she had chosen, to look for her lost love, and though she would miss those she left behind, she knew deep in her soul that this is what she should be doing with her life. If she didn't go through with it, then she wouldn't be able to ever forgive herself.

She honestly did love the others, but if she could, she'd prefer to pull this off on her own. For the first time, she was physically alone, but the thought left behind of Inuyasha was left embedded in her mind. His haori and his mother's ring were a constant reminder to her, and gave her the temporary strength to move onward.

Sloshing through the sticky mud, her feet drudged on and felt as if they were about to fall off. As if the rest of her body didn't feel that way. Inuyasha had blocked many hits from making it her way, but that hadn't fully prevented her from being battered around a few times. "Ugh," she groaned, "I forgot how sticky the mud gets…how long was I out? The mud should be slushy."

Where she was going at this moment in time, was unknown to even her. She would follow the path that she felt she should follow, and from then on, she hoped she could sense the Sacred Jewel on proceed on from there.

End of Chapter 11

***A/n : Haha, that should make more sense, but as to where Inuyasha is...or his state...is something I won't release yet. xD This chapter is short, but I'll update again within these next few days as compensation. This new computer works well (I finally got to type the rest of the chapter on it, I don't think my previous A/n matches), and I'm sorry to say that I had to retype this chapter about half a dozen times because ever time I saved on the Document Manager, it logged me out before it could save. If someone's on the Document Manager, it shouldn't be allowed to log you out. Wouldn't you guys agree?

~Mitz


	12. The Girl, the Dog, and the Toad

***A/n : Hiya! Whew...And I thought my teachers would get _nicer! _They wanna get out more than we do (if that is possible), and sometimes they shoot off an aura that says, "I don't want to see your faces anymore!" xD So, to punish us for still being there, we've been getting killed with projects...Sadly enough, not AS bad as last quarter, but last quarter I had to pull some long nights and early mornings (I'm an insomniac on top of that), and now that fatigue is starting to catch up with me. Haha...I've been dying to write for this last week, but by the time I'd finish homework, I'd look at the clock and say, "SHIT! I have to get up in an HOUR!" Then : *falls asleep*. Five minutes later : *beep beep BEEP!* Haha, no joke either. Last night, I slept a little more and I've got no more homework to do *smiles*. Good day; I'll probably sleep after I finish this...First time I can fall asleep during...Gee, I dun know...NIGHT TIME!

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Last time...

Where she was going at this moment in time, was unknown to even her. She would follow the path that she felt she should follow, and from then on, she hoped she could sense the Sacred Jewel on proceed on from there.

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Chapter 12 : The Girl, the Dog, and the Toad

Pacing down a small stretch of dirt (that once held grass, but was, unfortunately, stomped upon repetitiously), the minute toad demon mindlessly quibbled with himself before he dared afflict the words upon the girl who was the cause of this woes. He had falsely started the lecture about six times, but this time there was no stopping it. "Rin!"

Turning around with her innocent, clear eyes, she loyally answered, "Yes, Master Jaken?"

Cringing at her cheerfulness, he couldn't bear to yell at her, but he knew it was more than necessary. After all, not only had she wandered off with Ah-Un, but she also returned with her hands stained in blood (which, in itself, had given him a dreadful fright), and carting that good-for-nothing, half-demon, half-brother of Sesshomaru! Hell, she even had the Shikon no Tama in her possession!

__

First off, where did she pick up such things? Second, why?! Third, may I repeat, why? Fourthly, why is she so insistent on saving him? Fifthly, why would that bastard be all alone? Doesn't he usually travel with those humans…The same ones who like to beat the shit out of me! If it were up to me, I'd kill him right here with my staff of two heads, but no; the right to kill him is reserved for Lord Sesshomaru!

Assuming battle stance, Jaken spun around to deliver the final lecture, "Rin! How dare you run off with Ah-Un and come back with _that! _Why on earth would you do something like that! If he dies, he dies! Couldn't his companions have taken care of him at the very least? Why can't you think! You stupid, stupid girl!" There was more, oh, indeed, there was more, but Jaken felt as if he didn't have the words (nor the eloquence) needed to proceed. _If only Lord Sesshomaru were here; he'd know what to do with this girl…But then he'd know that she brought this heathen back with her! _

"But Master Jaken, he was almost dead…And though Lord Sesshomaru doesn't like him, Rin doesn't see the need for him to die."

He still couldn't buy her excuse, and he retorted with his eyebrows furrowing closer together by the second, "Why couldn't you leave him to his companions?!"

Blinking, she simply replied, "But…They weren't conscious, and Rin knew they weren't in any shape to save him. He'd have died if they didn't wake up fast."

Conflicted with emotions, the toad wasn't sure as to how to respond. Finally, he decided and explained, "Rin, I don't care if he's at death's door or on his way there, but we're taking him back to where he came from. You shouldn't be picking up anymore stray dogs as it is…" _It's bad enough you've been following My Lord, but now you find yourself in cahoots with his filthy, younger brother?! _

"But…" she objected as she saw his face contort once again in pain.

"No arguing!" he snapped. "Now, since you got him on Ah-Un, you load him back on! Then we drop him off, scrub until you can no longer smell anything, and that way, Lord Sesshomaru needn't find out!"

Silent footsteps came onto the campground, and a cold voice sounded behind the toad, "Jaken, what needn't I find out about, and why is my bastard brother here, nearly dead in your presence?"

"Ahhh! Lord Sesshomaru…" Jaken cowered away from his master.

"Answer me," the dog demon persisted with a colder tone than before.

Stuttering, he attempted to indulge upon his master's request, but a meek squeak (if only it could be addressed as such) was all that left his mouth.

A disturbingly evil smile crossed his lips as he asked, "Must I repeat myself? I must…Why is my disgrace of a brother here?"

"Because he was nearly dead, My Lord," Rin responded with a softer tone coating her voice.

"I can see that," Sesshomaru mused. "Now why is he here? Bleeding all over this place; his blood smells sour." His nose instantly wrinkled in disgust.

Neither of the two could quite reply; they knew the reasoning was terrible and there was no "valid" reason that Sesshomaru could _possibly _accept.

Rising to his feet, Inuyasha staggered and slurred, "Ses'ho'uro, wha' am I doin' 'ere?"

Sighing, the dog demon's seething rage escalated. "I don't know that…because _someone _won't tell me."

"Why no I dead yet?" Inuyasha's speech abilities began to reappear; grammar…not so much.

Sesshomaru almost smiled at that and commanded, "Jaken! Rin! We're going!"

"Yes, M'Lord…" Jaken muttered and gasped; His Lord didn't deliver any punishment.

Before Sesshomaru, and the always-trailing-behind Jaken, left her sight, Rin ran to Inuyasha and handed him the pink jewel. "Rin thinks this is yours. Get better!" As quickly as they met, the trio was walking over into the horizon.

* * *

_My shoes are soaked in blood...No, I am soaked in blood...I need to take a dip in the hot spring or something...But I need to find Inuyasha first...Kami-sama, please tell me he's alive; I'm covered in his blood. There was a lot, but if he wasn't there, he has to be around here somewhere._

_Lets see, I think I woke up at maybe...noonish? Yes, that's right, the sun was closer to the center of the sky. And we had to have been fighting for an hour...and it started at 3 ish yesterday. Hmm...Inuyasha could get far, but why would he leave...I have no clue...Another reason why I need to find him! Besides the crippling lonliness..._

For three hours, she had swaggered through the trees with aimful intent, but no clues surrounding it. Her eyes widened as a familiar presence caught her radar: the Shikon no Tama.

Running in a burst of speed on borrowed energy, Kagome zig-zagged in the general direction. She hadn't had anything to drink in, well, she no longer knew, and her breath was heaving. Lungs aching, body throbbing, and emotionally conflicted, hopeful tears ran down her face and clouded her vision; despite this, she avoided all the trees and continued running. Whether it had been a few minutes or a few hours, she had no idea. If he was anywhere, it'd be near the Shikon no Tama.

* * *

_Ugh, fuck! _His vision faded between darkness and blurred images, and all he knew was he was being attacked.

* * *

"Inuyasha!" Kagome yelled from across the field. Recognizing the voice, one of Inuyasha's ears tweaked in the general direction of Kagome as he dodged a broad, swiping paw.

"Kagome! Be my eyes!" Inuyasha managed to enunciate his words correctly. Instead of "being his eyes", she quickly drew her bow and shot with the last arrow in her quiver. Hitting it dead on, she ran to Inuyasha.

Collapsing to his knees, Inuyasha set down Tetsusaiga as Kagome sagged down next to him. Together they made a huddled mess, and their gasping breaths clashed. "Thank God..." Inuyasha muttered. _I thought she died...If Kagome's alright...The others should be, too. She smells like...my blood...Heh, that's alright..._

"Guh!" Blood spluttered from his mouth as coughed.

"Inuyasha...?" Kagome turned herself to look at him and saw his hand (which blood was trickling down) in front of his face. "What happened?"

"Poison..." he managed to whisper out before his weight collapsed onto Kagome. Spinning herself, she managed all her strength and hefted Inuyasha (who was surprisingly light, probably due to his body composition) onto her shoulders the same sort of way he often held her.

_Why is the Shikon no Tama here? This thing has become a burden on us all; it is responsible for many deaths, pain, suffering...But if it weren't for it, I would have never met Inuyasha...Haha, I sound so selfish right now, but it's like the flowers that spring up after the fire has burned; the good things that came out from the ashes. Sango and Miroku, the Shikon no Tama brought them together as well. It was why we met Shippo, too. I don't think I ever realized how different our lives would be without it. I would, by now, be a normal high school girl hanging out with her friends, trying to find a boyfriend, and figuring out what on Earth I want to do with my life. Now I realize that with it, I don't regularly attend school, in fact, I'm technically repeating a year, I have a "boyfriend" (heh, who am I kidding? No one! "Soul mate" is more accurate!), amazing friends, and frankly, not a single clue exists about what I'll be doing any father than a few hours!_

_Yet, ya know what? I wouldn't trade it for that normal life, but I don't think I could go about letting the Shikon no Tama exist any longer. I wish it was gone, banished from the realms of existence; it shouldn't be allowed to tamper with more lives. Granted, ours turned for the better...Unless Inuyasha...No, he won't. I found him and I'm taking him back. It has destroyed the lives of so many, and I don't think it needs to be in existence any longer. _

Pink light emmitted from the jewel and a rose tinge encased Kagome's face in an unearthly glow. A soft voice crooned a thanks in her ear, and Kagome's face relaxed as she saw the pink jewel dissintigrate and form fine ash.

_You're welcome...Midoriko-san. I've set you free. Thank you for all you've done._

_It really is gone...Mama, Souta, Gramps, Buyo, I'm sorry, but I won't be coming home for a while...With no Jewel, can I even cross? I'm surprised that nothing happened...You'd think I'd vanish right back to where I came from with memories that I could never conclude. Thank goodness...That isn't something I could do. _

She knew that there was a spring of sorts approaching as she had past one at the beginning of her venture, and that wounds must be dressed. Maybe then she could find some herbs that would combat the poison before she brought him back; and maybe, just maybe, he'd be able to walk by himself. Though he wasn't incredibly heavy, the constant strain on her already-sore self would be ultimately enough to take her down as well. However, with determination (and a little bit of rest...she wasn't going to lie) she thought she'd be able to make it back to Kaede's village even with him in tow.

Despite her own footsteps (which crunched as she shifted along over fallen twigs), there was not a sound : no animals, no nothing. It was all too quiet for her to bear, and the silence began to ebb away at her mind. After an endless count of seconds, a groan filled the pregnant pause. Shocked, but relieved, she regained her composure and asked, "Inuyasha, are you awake?"

Another groan was her response, and though he was weak, Inuyasha slid off her back and onto his shaking feet. Kagome didn't want to argue with him, so instead she grabbed his arm and ushered him to the spring. "Sit down," she commanded as she pointed to an area bordering the spring.

As told, he sat down wordlessly, and Kagome knelt down beside him. "Inuyasha...what happened?"

His eyes couldn't meet her own as she removed what was left of his undershirt. "I don't know anymore...what happened?"

Watching the blood swirl around in the seemingly endless blue abyss, her attention was completely diverted. It had its own pattern and she couldn't help but watch it progress in the stilling waters. Her mind shook in realization as her focus broke, and she quickly swished a bit of the torn undershirt in the water and began washing the dried blood off his back in repentance for her mindlessness.

"I'm not sure, either...I remember we were fighting Naraku, and you got knocked out. I was calling out to you, but you didn't get up...And then...I don't know..." Kagome rubbed her head as if to assure herself that she couldn't remember the rest. "I woke up and Shippo came running; he said he put Sango and Miroku on Kirara for Kaede, and we saw you were gone, and I ran out into the woods to go looking for you..." Her sentences ran on and on, but she managed to fill him in on her side of the story...

Inuyasha's eyes flared at the "ran out into the woods" part, but he let it be; he was far too confused to bother. _What the fuck is happening to me? _Cold sweat broke on hiss forehead as he stared with intent at Kagome, hoping that she was indeed tangible. As if that would do him any good; the dreams felt so real, but fake at the same time. _This doesn't feel fake...Do I even know what that is anymore?_

"Kagome," he began as he realized how stupid this may sound, "are you, are you really here?"

Her hands stopped in place as she answered, "Yeah...It's really me. I don't know what sort of stuff you saw, but we're all _here. _We're all _okay. _It's _you _we are worried about...These wounds are deep, and you've been poisoned...We're more concerned about you. I'm just a bit sore, sore, but fine..."

A clawed hand caressed and cupped her cheek before it reddened, and he leaned in for a careful kiss; reluctant at first, far different from their previous endeavors, his lips met hers. Though a discombobulated look dressed Kagome's face, she understood and changed it to a sympathetic one. In a silent understanding, they lingered in the other's sight for but a moment longer. His breath whispered words only she could faintly hear, "You really are here...I'm glad..." Kagome couldn't help but notice the defeated look in his golden eyes transform into something she hadn't seen in him too often: t'was an unusual peace, and a glimmer of love.

Sinking deeply, his eyelids fluttered closed, and Kagome felt his weight return back to her shoulder. Before she resumed to cleaning his wounds, Kagome sighed an aching sigh that couldn't express the sadness in her heart; no, not one for herself, but one for her love. She'd found him after countless, sleepless hours of searching, and barely alive. _Alive...That's all I ever could ask for. What he had seen, I don't know. What could possibl_y _leave such a look in his eyes? Inuyasha..._Her tears, which she had held, spilled over, and on instinct, Inuyasha's lips muttered, "Dun cry, 'Gome..."

Smiling, she tightly wrapped the last of his wounds with the dryer parts of his shredded undershirt. "Inuyasha...thank you." His arms were loosely wrapped around her, but she found that she couldn't escape from his tight grasp. Though she wanted to go hunt for herbs, she couldn't move much. Laying down, he instantly followed reflexively, and they both found themselves in the realm of dreams.

End of Chapter 12

*A/n : That is it folks! For today anyways...I need to go to bed, but I hope that you read and review! Mitz-chan felt a little unloved last chapter, but she was incredibly thankful to the four who reviewed! Thanks again guys! And I'm talking in third person...I should sleep soon. Anyways, I'm offering a challenge...well a few actually! Figure out who thought what in the "Reality, Fantasy, or Fate" chapters, who's POV it was in, and why it was so contorted from the truth. Then, also try your hand at what the hell am I planning! :P Oooh, and what DIDN'T you guys get to read? Those who guess right will receive some "virtual cookies"! Hahaha...lame reward, but it works! Now you've read, please review!

~Mitz


	13. Realizing Reality

***A/n : Hello all! It's three days late, I apologize! I kinda...erm...fell asleep while typing this Sunday night. *scratches back of head nervously* I remember typing something, deleting it, and waking up to, "YOU'RE GOING TO BE LATE!" The crash is amazing! Hahaha! Sorry...You guys will probably be reading this on the third day late! Need to stop promising a date for release! *writes on sticky note and attaches to forehead* I keep promising I'll stop lying, but it's not intentional! . How about I give chappy summary instead! And I will...If I don't PM with an annoyed face :( or something! Oh, and I have to announce who receives a cookie! You guys came pretty close, too! **Apocalypsefantasy** and** horseygurl89**! Woo! This chapter might fully allow you to figure it out. :P Thank you **Charli2006** for also trying! ^_^ Thanks to all of my reviewers for the last chapter! As of now, ODISSC has exactly 100 reviews! That made 12 reviews for the last chapter! 12 reviews on chapter 12! Can I have 13 for 13? Haha...maybe? No. Guess that's asking a bit much. xD 'Specially since I totally lied to you guys! Least it's not a week later...*sighs and bows deeply in apology*...On with the chapter!

**FOR THOSE WHO ARE CONFUSED : THIS IS REALITY! Pay more attention to my titles and _italics _next time, 'kay? :DDD**

One Day in Social Studies Class...

Last time...

Smiling, she tightly wrapped the last of his wounds with the dryer parts of his shredded undershirt. "Inuyasha...thank you." His arms were loosely wrapped around her, but she found that she couldn't escape from his tight grasp. Though she wanted to go hunt for herbs, she couldn't move much. Laying down, he instantly followed reflexively, and they both found themselves in the realm of dreams.

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Chapter 13 : Realizing Reality

"Nggg," Inuyasha groaned as he stretched, and a searing pain instantly shot through his chest.

Within seconds, Kagome was slowly pushing him back down with her cold hands, "You shouldn't be getting up yet; we managed to cure the poison, but your healing has slightly slowed. No breaking open any wounds."

After taking in his surroundings, he wondered aloud, "Where am I? Kaede's hut?"

"Mmm," Kagome sounded as she nodded. "Miroku, Sango, and Kirara found us."

BHis mind was conflicted with a flurry of questions, but he knew he could only utter a single one at a time. "They okay?"

She nodded once more while her hands were busy adjusting his pilllow. Sketching her figure, his eyes continued their wandering path while his nose simultaneously inhaled the scents around him. " 'Gome, what was happening to me?"

With a sincere, understanding tone, she managed to reply, "I can't answer that; I don't even know what happened to you physically...Why don't we start there?" Her hand took his and she squeezed it, urging him to begin the tale she had waited days to hear.

Searching his memory, he slowly recalled the bits he remembered. "This is the bit we both share, right? We fought Naraku and I got knocked out?" His tone didn't even trust the words it was speaking, as if it were some foreign language that was crossing his lips. The unbearable feeling was eating away at him as his mind was borderline between reality, fantasy, and possibly, hell. He needed to know where he was.

Yet again, Kagome found herself nodding; speaking was just odd at this moment in time. She thought she had lost him, she spent (what she now knows as) a day and a half running around and searching for him, killed a monster attacking him, dragged him all the way to that creek thing, and fell asleep with him in her arms. Far from being over, the overwhelming feeling droned on, even now, three days later. He was awake, but she couldn't help but let that feeling nag at her soul.

"This next part...no, it can't be true...I woke up and saw the three of you...dead," his voice shuttered like no other time Kagome had ever known him. Honestly, at that moment in time, she could tell that he had no clue what he would have done if that were indeed true.

Widening and then softening, her glance fell upon his pained expression. "It's alright. I'm here, and the others are outside fishing...We are all here. It must have been the poison...That stuff was potent..." she trailed off once she saw a stray tear slide down his face. Wiping it away, she smiled a nervous smile in an attempt to comfort him. "The three of us where knocked out though...and well...I was already covered in...your blood," Kagome mentally and physically shuttered at the remembrance, "and Sango and Miroku had a few cuts of their own...There was hail and it was wet...There looked like there was more than there was."

He stole a breath and a squeeze from Kagome's hand before he continued, "I...I...didn't know what to do...I didn't care how much it hurt...I just wanted to kill that bastard...With my own claws...He had to die...It didn't matter if it killed me..."

Kagome's other hand settled over his whitening knuckles and they instantly relaxed. "You killed Naraku Inuyasha. I don't know how you did it, but he's gone...For good. You've avenged Kikyou..." _That should put his mind to rest; he's avenged Kikyou. But he was willing to die..._

Lighting up in shock, Inuyasha's pitch rose defensively as he responded, "It wasn't for Kikyou!" His eyes lit up in anger; how could she possibly understand that _she _didn't pass even once through his mind throughout the entire battle? What would it take to make her realize that nothing he did anymore was for her? He _proposed _for crying out loud! Did she not know that he had picked her, Kagome? He knew now that Kikyou was dead, killed for a second time by Naraku. Had she missed the memo?

Stuttering, Kagome could barely regain her composure, "But...Why? Why then?"

"Kagome, why must you ask these questions?" his voice softened to almost a whisper. "You are an idiot sometimes, you know that." The absence of a retrorting comeback took him aback before he chose to finish his remark, "I didn't care what the fuck happened to me...I didn't even think I could come back to face _Shippo_...I did it for Sango, and Miroku...and you."

A smile crossed her lips, but the circumstances instantly tainted the expression and she quickly removed it from her face. Instead, she spoke the two words she could think of, "Thank you..."

"Wait, what for?"

"Oh, now _you _are the one asking _me _a stupid question..."

"Fine, but I answered _your _stupid question. Now you answer _mine._"

Rubbing the back of her neck in a fervent nervousness, she knew that she didn't want to mess this up. "Because...I like hearing that you care. About all of us." She shook her head, momentarily cleared her train of thought (only to be brought back up at a later date), and remembered what this entire conversation was about. "What happened next?"

"I remember I saw him fall, but I wasn't standing up...Then...I don't know how to describe it." His brows furrowed and he continued, "I was having these...these strange...dreams. Some were good...but some weren't...It was like anything and everything I ever feared and hoped for. All of it was there."

"What happened in these dreams?"

"It wouldn't be any fun if I were to tell you, would it?" Though his mouth held his classic, boyish grin, his eyes begged her not to pursue the subject.

Inuyasha laughed at the next sequential event that he recalled. "I think I even had a dream about Sesshomaru...He was there, too. He didn't even want to kill me either...What sort of fucked up reality is that?"

"That actually might be possible," Kagome considered. "You weren't near the battle ground, and maybe your brother was feeling bad for you?" _I can't believe how stupid I'm sounding right now...Sesshomaru, feeling bad for Inuyasha? What am I talking about?_

"Pffft. As if, if anything that silly little girl would save me before my brother does!"

Laughing, she agreed, "Yeah. In fact I can picture it right now! That little girl trying to pick you up and drag you back, and then begging that toad thing to let her keep you!"

_Haha...Wait, did that actually happen...? Oh well, I'll beat it out of that toad later._

Without provoking, Inuyasha finished, "And then you found me...You sure it was poison?"

"Yeah pretty sure..."

_All of that because of some poison, and what the fuck is it with poison lately?! This shit just keeps getting stronger and stronger..._

"Wait, if I killed that bastard, where's the Sacred Jewel, and is Miroku's..."

He was cut off by Kaogme, "I destroyed it; I'm sorry...I wished it away, and Midoriko-san thanked me. It caused so much pain, and I know it was selfish of me; I couldn't let you become a demon again. The Wind Tunnel is gone, and Miroku practically spent hours just staring at his normal hand."

Reaching up to toy with a piece of hair close to her face, he ran a clawed index finger down her cheek. "I didn't want to become a demon anyways; I don't want to lose myself." _I don't want to lose you._

End of Chapter 13

*A/n : Bwahaha, FINISHED! I've been pecking at this since Saturday, and this chapter is finally done! Woo! Please forgive this poor soul for updating three days late (sorry again if it's not in your time zone!)! I _will _make chapter summaries, too. Soo...Now that you've read please review? Thanks for reading!

~Mitz


	14. NOTICE : PLEASE READ

Unfortunately, this is only a notice to ODISSC readers. As you have possibly noticed, it hasn't been updated in months, and I would like to sincerely apologize. Mitzuki has been in an odd mind set for quite some time now, and though it has pained her, she spent many hours staring at that flashing cursor wondering when her fingers would start up in their usual typing. I don't want to make any more excuses, so I'll just leave it at that. After many months, and many awkward attemps, I want to restart ODISSC, and this time, I hope to make it even better than before. If I promised to read something, please remind me...Or well, any other responsibilities, please let me know. :) I'll get working on this as soon as I possibily can, but my life is crazier than it was before; I'm taking almost all AP classes as a freshman. Anywho, I hope those of you who have supported me in the past (though I give you no reason what-so-ever to continue on...I sincerely apologize), will continue, but if not, well thank you for your past interest.

I probably shall keep this story as a reminder to myself, but Mitzuki-chan seriously hasn't been feeling like herself lately so...Continuing on like this is rather too difficult. I was wondering what was missing in my life, and I think this is it. ODISSC shall go on, but please, wait a little longer for her to resume with her new version (there will be new content). Thank you all for reading. :)

~Mitzuki


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